Last Updated:
Wanna know how to make a Tom Collins? Great! You’re in the right place! To make a Tom Collins you mix together Old Tom Gin, lemon juice, sugar syrup and tonic water.
Let’s a dive a little deeper into the cocktail.
Wanna know how to make a Tom Collins? It’s super simple: to make a Tom Collins you mix together Old Tom Gin, lemon juice, sugar syrup and tonic water.
You just build this cocktail over ice – you don’t even need a cocktail shaker for this one!
The Tom Collins sounds delicious and refreshing, right? It really is!
Let’s take a deep dive into the cocktail.
In this article we’re gonna cover:
- How to make a Tom Collins.
- What you need to make a Tom Collins.
- How many Calories are in a Tom Collins.
- The history of the Tom Collins.
- A totally free how to make a Tom Collins Infographic that you can download and take away with you.
Super cool, right? Let’s get started.
How to Make a Tom Collins
First up, let’ds dive right into how to make a Tom Collins.
Tom Collins Cocktail Recipe
Ingredients
- Old Tom Gin 50ml / 1.7oz.
- Lemon Juice 25ml / 0.8oz.
- Sugar Syrup 25ml / 0.8oz.
- Tonic Water 125ml / 4.2oz.
- a slice of lemon
Recipe
- Add Ice, Old Tom Gin, Lemon Juice, Sugar Syrup, and Tonic Water to a Collins Glass.
- Garnish with a slice of lemon.
Tweet This Recipe
Share on Facebook
Email to a FriendPretty straight forward, right?
Boy, is this cocktail refreshing! With that lemon juice and soda water, the Tom Collins makes for a perfect cocktail on a summers day. Or a winters day. Or…in fact, let’s face it: this cocktail is easily drinkable all year round.
What You Need to Make a Tom Collins
So now we know how to make a Tom Collins, here are our recommendations on what you need to make the cocktail.
Old Tom Gin
First up, you’re going to need your base alcohol: Gin…
…but not just any gin. Old Tom Gin.
What is Old Tom Gin?
Old Tom Gin is NOT a brand of gin – it’s a type of gin.
Old Tom Gin is a Gin recipe that was popular in the 18th Century. It’s sweeter than your standard dry Gin, but drier than the really sweet Dutch Gin, Jenever.
For it’s standing between really dry and really sweet Gin’s, it’s often referred to as the Missing Link.
You may never have heard of Old Tom Gin before with good reason. Old Tom Gin became rare in the 20th Century, but the recent “Craft Cocktail” movement has brought it back in a BIG way.
Our recommendation for Old Tom Gin is:
If you click this link and make a purchase, we earn a commission at no additional cost to you.
Lemon Squeezer
So, how are you getting your freshly squeezed lemon juice right now? Are you squeezing a half lemon with your bare hands?
Well, using a handheld lemon squeezer is going to change your life.
I call it a lemon squeezer, but it can be used for pretty much any citrus fruit – though I don’t fancy your chances of cramming a half grapefruit in there…
…ANYWAY, here’s the squeezer we recommend:
If you click this link and make a purchase, we earn a commission at no additional cost to you.
Tonic Water
When considering Tonic Water options, I still think you can’t really go wrong with Schweppes.
If you click this link and make a purchase, we earn a commission at no additional cost to you.
However, if you’re watching your waistline there’s a contender to the Schweppes:
If you click this link and make a purchase, we earn a commission at no additional cost to you.
As I try to lose a little weight, I found myself buying Skinny Tonic Water more and more. It’s very good.
Talking of watching our waistlines, let’s take a look at how many calories there are in a Tom Collins.
How Many Calories are in a Tom Collins?
History of the Tom Collins
Like a lot of cocktails (most notably, the Moscow Mule), the story of the Tom Collins cocktail is a controversial one, with many staking claim to it’s invention.
The London Claim
Once upon a time, there were two brothers: Tom and John. But they weren’t brothers at all. They were cocktails…
…Cocktails? WTF am I even talking about?!?!
LET ME CLEAR THIS UP: as far records go on the Tom Collins cocktail recipe, it always starts with two cocktails that are pretty much identical.
Yeah, you guessed it, these cocktails are called John Collins and Tom Collins.
What’s the Difference Between a Tom Collins and a John Collins cocktail?
The difference between a Tom Collins and John Collins cocktails is the type of Gin used to make them.
The John Collins was made using Dutch Gin AKA Jenever, whereas the Tom Collins cocktail recipe was made using Old Tom Gin.
Who Invented the Tom Collins?
Both Collins’ cocktails were thought to have been invented by a bartender by the name of John Collins, working out of Limmer’s Hotel, Conduit Street, London.
The ‘coffee house’ of Limmer’s Hotel was a dive bar by all accounts, popular with the sporting crowds. According to the 1860s memoirs of infamous dandy Captain Gronow, the bar was a popular for it’s Gin Punches as early as 1814.
Whilst it isn’t recorded what those famous Gin Punches consisted of, it would appear that John Collins adapted his signature cocktail from them.
How did the Tom Collins get its Name?
It’s quite easy to see where the John Collins got its name: it was named after the bartender that created it.
But where did the name for the Tom Collins come from? If you haven’t guessed already, in this narrative it’s widely believed to have been named after the use of Old Tom Gin.
The New York Claims
There are three stories which describe how the Tom Collins got its name from New York.
The Mysterious Mr Collins
The first attributes the creation of the drink to a bartender only known as Mr Collins who worked in a New York bar by the name of the Whitehouse in 1873. Mr Collins was renowned for making tasty Gin drinks and that about as much information as we have on that one.
Actual Tom Collins
The second story references a bartender who’s actually called Tom Collins. Collins worked as a bartender in New Jersey and New York City where he, allegedly, created the cocktail.
Again, a distinct lack of information prevents me from believing that one.
The Great Tom Collins Hoax
The third New York claim comes in the form of the Great Tom Collins Hoax, which was a real thing that took the city by storm in 1874 (if you can believe it).
This claim has been echoed by a number of recent websites ranging from Vinepair to the Business Insider.
So what was the Great Tom Collins Hoax?
Let me break it down for you (the best I can and in modern day lingo)…
It was a prank that started with one man asking another: “Have you heard of Tom Collins?”
“No,” the other reply.
“Because he’s been talking shit about you.”
“You fucking what mate?”
The outraged man would then go about asking for Tom Collins and feeling like a complete dickhead when the joke was actually revealed to him.
…this would not have worked today. But I love it. Winding people up just because – it’s what I live for.
…BUT ANYWAY, it was inexplicably popular to the point where newspapers printed stories about false sightings of Tom Collins. Songs were even made about it.
Now, some people that the classic Tom Collins cocktail was named after the hoax, but I’m not one of them (I believe the London Claim, thanks for asking).
Wouldn’t it make more sense for the cocktail to have been invented first and the butt of the joke was actually: it’s a cocktail that’s looking for you?
…REGARDLESS, this is one theory behind the name of the cocktail.
Let’s move on to our how to make a Tom Collins Infographic.
How to make a Tom Collins Infographic
What is this? It’s an image that details how to make a Tom Collins cocktail. You can download it and take it away with you…how cool is that?
Here’s how to do it:
To save this how to make a Tom Collins Infographic to your computer:
- Right-click the image.
- Select Save Image As…
- Choose a location on your PC and click the save button.
Or a tablet or mobile:
- Press and keep your finger on the image until options appear.
- Click the download image option.
Want More Cocktail Ideas?
No that you know how to make a Tom Collins, do you want to expand your cocktail recipe list? Need a little more cocktail inspiration?
You’re in the right place.
Check out our cocktail recipe hub. There you’ll find over 100 cocktail recipes for you to try – pretty cool, right?
Better yet, why not search our cocktail collection? You can search by:
- A cocktail name. For example, Long Island Iced Tea.
- By alcohol. For example, Vodka.
- Or by mixer. For example, Orange Juice.
- Or a combination. For example, Vodka Orange Juice.
So cool!
Happy mixing, guys.
