Jul 18, 2024

The Secret to Making a Killer Tom Collins Cocktail

Tom Collins

The Tom Collins dates back as far as the 1870s and was first featured in Jerry Thomas’ The Bartender’s Guide in 1876. Other versions of the Collins date back further, but these were most likely made using Dutch genever rather than gin.

The drink is reportedly named after John Collins, a waiter in London who was famous for his gin punch.

CONTENTS

What Gin is Best for a Tom Collins?
What Glass Should I use for a Tom Collins?
Do you Shake or Stir a Tom Collins?
Tom Collins Cocktail Recipe

1. What Gin is Best for a Tom Collins?

The original Tom Collins recipe was made with an Old Tom gin, a style of gin that was popular 150 years ago. Old Tom gin was typically made from a limited number of botanicals, made from grain, and pot distilled, which gave it a malty character. It was often sweetened or had a perceived sweetness from ingredients such as licorice root or fennel seed. Old Tom gins can also barrel aged.

As Old Tom gins became less abundant, bartenders naturally picked up a bottle of London dry gin to make their Tom Collins cocktails.

We recommend reaching for your favourite dry gin to make your next Tom Collins. A London dry gin highlights juniper and citrus making it a perfect choice for a refreshing, bright and bubbly Tom Collins. Your drink will be effervescent and citrusy with pleasant piney notes.

2. What Glass Should I use for a Tom Collins?

Short answer = use a tall, slender glass with a capacity of 300–420 ml to serve a Tom Collins cocktail.

There are three types of tall glasses for serving mixed drinks. The Fizz, the Collins and the Highball glass.

Fizz glass = 180 ml
Collins glass = 300–420 ml
Highball glass = 240–360 ml

The Fizz and Collins glasses were introduced in the late nineteenth century and designed to serve carbonated drinks. Both glasses are tall and narrow in order to maintain carbonation.

The Highball glass was later introduced in the 1890s and bridged the gap between the smaller Fizz glass and the larger Collins glass. The Highball glass is commonly used for two-ingredient mixed drinks known as highballs and other “tall” drinks such as the Mojito. This glass quickly became a one-size-fits-all replacement for the Fizz and Collins glasses.

Most Tom Collins recipes are composed of 150–160 ml of ingredients that are served over ice. A glass with a capacity of approximately 360 ml is most suitable for serving a Tom Collins which means you could use a suitably sized Highball or Collins glass.

3. Do you Shake or Stir a Tom Collins?

The original Tom Collins was most likely served as a built drink yet it’s more common for modern cocktail bars to shake the cocktail. The shaken method will produce a more integrated drink that retains carbonation for longer.

Shaking your Tom Collins will improve the drink in two ways.

The ingredients will be well integrated rather than being somewhat layered in the glass
Your drink will be colder which means better carbonation retention

CO2 is more soluble in colder liquids. Meaning that you can make a more carbonated drink the colder the liquid is. And the opposite is true. Adding soda water to unchilled ingredients will expel the CO2 gases and produce a lifeless Tom Collins.

So whilst you can opt to shake or stir your Tom Collins, shaking will be a better option to producing a brighter, bubbly drink.