Tom Collins
Ingredients
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- 2 cups ice
- 2 ounces gin
- 1 ounce lemon juice – freshly squeezed (~0.5 medium lemons)
- 3/4 ounce simple syrup
- 3 ounces club soda – chilled
- lemon – cut into a wheel (for garnish)
- maraschino cherry – for garnish
Instructions
1. Fill a cocktail shaker and a Collins glass with ice.
2. Add the gin, lemon juice, and simple syrup to the shaker; shake hard until well-chilled, 10–12 seconds.
3. Strain into the prepared Collins glass.
4. Top with the club soda and give a gentle stir to combine.
5. Garnish with a slice of lemon and a maraschino cherry. Serve immediately.
The Tom Collins is a tall, sparkling gin sour that balances bright lemon, gentle sweetness, and brisk effervescence. Served over ice in its namesake Collins glass, it’s light, citrusy, and highly refreshing, with the botanicals of the gin lifted by bubbles. A lemon slice and cherry garnish provide aroma and a classic look without weighing down the drink’s crisp finish.
The drink belongs to the broader Collins family—long, carbonated takes on the basic sour—documented in 19th-century bartending guides. The name Tom Collins rose to fame in the 1870s and is often linked to the era’s “Tom Collins” hoax, while printed recipes soon standardized gin, lemon, sugar, and soda. Over time, the style evolved from Old Tom gin toward dry gins, but the essential formula and presentation have remained enduring fixtures of American cocktail culture.