Tom Collins

Step up your gin and tonic game with this classic instead. For this Tom Collins cocktail, start with a standard Collins glass; gin and lemon are simply topped with bubbly water and garnished with a cherry and lemon.

History of the Tom Collins Cocktail

The Tom Collins is one of the most famous basic cocktails. It gets its name from the fact that it traditionally had a base of Old Tom gin, and was poured into a tall Collins glass. Unlike some other cocktails, you build it in the glass rather than in a shaker. It comes from the Victorian-era boom of cocktail making. This period of barmen slinging gin drinks set the stage for much of the modern world of mixology. Another interesting potential origin for the cocktail is the “Tom Collins” hoax in American small towns in the 1800s, where people would ask each other “Have you seen Tom Collins?” and pretend someone by that name was asking about them at a local bar. When someone stormed into a bar and asked for Tom Collins, this was the drink they got. Pretty annoying, but great marketing tactic.

Tom Collins

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• Author: Sarah Cascone

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Description

A classic cocktail you’ll love.

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Ingredients

Scale 1x2x3x

For the cocktail: 

• 2 oz Tanqueray London Dry Gin
• 1 oz fresh squeezed lemon juice
• ½ oz simple syrup (recipe below)
• Soda water
• Garnish: Lemon wheel and Luxardo cherry

For the simple syrup: 

• 1 cup water
• 1 cup sugar

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Instructions

For the cocktail:

1. You will build your cocktail in the glass.
2. Take the Collins glass, pour in the simple syrup, then fill the glass with ice, pour the gin and fresh lemon juice over the ice, and top the cocktail with the soda water.
3. Garnish the cocktail with a lemon wheel wrapped softly around the Luxardo cherry on a pick across the rim of the glass.

For the simple syrup: 

1. In a small saucepan, bring the water and sugar to a boil, stirring until the sugar is dissolved.
2. Remove the saucepan from the heat. Allow the syrup to come to room temperature. Then pour into a container.
3. This simple syrup will last a minimum of 2 weeks as is in the refrigerator or if you add a tablespoon of vodka or rum it will last longer.

Recipe by Sarah Cascone
Photography by Dave Bryce

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