Name: MyZo
Total time: 4 min
Cuisine: Cocktail
Ingredients: 1&frasl;4 inch red chili pepper; 50 ml Vanilla vodka; 25 ml Elderflower cordial; 25 ml Lemon juice

MyZo
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Glass:

Serve in a Coupe glass

Ingredients:
¹⁄₄ inch	Red chili pepper (jalapeño/fresno chili 10,000 SHU) deseeded
1 ²⁄₃ fl oz	Vanilla flavoured vodka
⁵⁄₆ fl oz	Elderflower cordial
⁵⁄₆ fl oz	Lemon juice (freshly squeezed)

Read about cocktail measures and measuring

Prepare:

Select and pre-chill a COUPE GLASS.
Prepare garnish of lemon zest twist.

How to make:

MUDDLE chili in base of shaker.
Add other ingredients and SHAKE with ice.
FINE STRAIN into chilled glass.

Garnish:

EXPRESS lemon zest twist over the cocktail and use as garnish.

Strength & taste guide:

No alcohol

Medium

Boozy

Sweet

Medium

Dry/sour

More cocktails with similar strength and taste profile

Review:

Rich vanilla with sweet elderflower balanced by zesty lemon and enlivened by chilli heat.

View readers' comments

Variations/similar cocktails:

Spicy Fifty; Fuego Manzana No.2

History:

Adapted from a recipe created in 2004 by Myles Cunliffe, then a young bartender at Brownes Bar and Restaurant in Brighton, England. This cocktail earned Myles Cunliffe third place in the Stolichnaya sponsored UKBG Cocktail Challenge held in London's Sosho Match bar on 13th June 2004.

Like so many cocktails, even prize-winning cocktails, the MyZo was quickly forgotten. That was until years later when another similar cocktail, the Spicy Fifty, created soon after the competition by the famous bartender Salvatore Calabrese, began to be featured on websites (such as this one) and in books. Indeed, the Spicy Fifty first appeared in our Difford's Guide to Cocktails Twelfth Edition published in 2016. The similarity in ingredients with the Spicy Fifty reminded Myles' of his proud win as a young bartender and that it was Salvatore who presented Myles with his winning cheque [pictured here along with an photo of Dale DeGroff drinking a MyZo].

Myles tells the story, "In 2003 I had been familiar with vanilla vodka and elderflower having played around with that combo for a while, it took a messy chilli filled Sunday afternoon whereby I was trying chilli in everything and this combo worked. Originally it was a long drink (just add soda). I found the Stoli comp on the UKBG website and decided to enter. I submitted the drink and then forgot about it until I received an email from them asking to amend the recipe as it was a short drink recipe (read the comp rules is key to comps) so I removed the soda and resubmitted. This followed with an additional email inviting me to Sosho for the heats. Then the rest shall we say is history. The name however was supposed to be half Myles half Zoe as in MyZo however at the comp I was asked for the inspiration behind the drink (my girlfriend) and the name of my girlfriend (Zoe) and everyone assumed I had named it after her.... (still dining out on that one)."

This story has a happy ending as the MyZo is now not only recognised on this website but also in a letter from Salvatore Damiano, President of the UKBG, saying, "The United Kingdom Bartenders Guild confirms that the MyZo cocktail by M. Cunliffe has been archived in the UKBG national database." The letter confirms the official recipe as follows:

"MyZo
50 ml Stolichnaya vanilla Vodka,
25 ml fresh lemon juice,
25 ml elderflower cordial
1 cm piece red chilli
shake hard over ice and double strain into chilled cocktail glass"

Alcohol content:

We don't have enough information to calculate the alc./vol., but based on known ingredients, this recipe contains at least:

15.8 grams of pure alcohol

Difford’s Guide remains free-to-use thanks to the support of the brands in green above. Values stated for alcohol and calorie content, and number of drinks an ingredient makes should be considered approximate.

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Aaron Fredriksson

10th July at 17:40

Im gonna be honest, cant taste the chili or the elderflower.. the lemon juice takes over so much that it just tastes like a Lemon Drop to me! Burt- agreat way to use up ur elderflower syrup nontheless. Maybe less lemon

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