Tom Collins: Old Tom Roots in a Classic Gin Highball

The Tom Collins is one of the clearest expressions of the Collins template: gin, lemon, sugar, and soda stretched into a tall, cooling drink. It feels simple because it is, but the history behind the name is less straightforward than the recipe.

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 ounces gin
• 3/4 ounce lemon juice
• 3/4 ounce simple syrup
• Top off with soda water
• Garnish with a brandied cherry
• Garnish with an orange wheel

Directions

• Pour the gin, lemon juice, and simple syrup into a cocktail shaker.
• Add ice and shake until chilled.
• Strain over ice into a Collins glass.
• Top off with soda water.
• Garnish with a brandied cherry and an orange wheel.

Old Tom and a Famous Name

The Tom Collins is usually understood as the Collins variation historically associated with Old Tom gin. The name became especially famous during the Tom Collins hoax of 1874, but the drink itself appears to predate the prank rather than originate from it.

Collins History Before and After Jerry Thomas

By the time Jerry Thomas printed a Tom Collins recipe in 1876, the broader Collins family was already established. Older Collins history overlaps with John Collins and earlier Collins Punch references, which is why later retellings can make the naming feel unstable.

Modern bars often build a Tom Collins with London Dry gin, but the older association with Old Tom helps explain why the drink carries its own name rather than reading as just any gin highball.

Why It Endures

The Tom Collins lasts because it is direct without being dull. Gin provides the frame, lemon provides the lift, sugar rounds the edges, and soda turns the whole thing into something long and easy to revisit.

Best on warm afternoons and early evenings when brightness matters most. 🍋🫧