When Life Gives You Lemons... Make a Tom Collins!

The Tom Collins cocktail all starts with a man named John Collins. He was the headwaiter at Limmer’s Hotel in London. His version of a single serving of gin punch became famous among the hotel patrons and was made with lemon, sugar, Holland gin, and soda water.

Well, where did the "Tom" in Tom Collins begin? As the beverage grew in popularity, it jumped the pond to America. The first printed recipe for the Tom Collins comes from Jerry Thomas' book in 1876. Now, the drink calls for Old Tom gin instead of the Holland gin (or Genever) that John had used.

By the late 1870s, Tom Collins had become not only an identifiable drink but a long-standing joke for bartenders and bar patrons. It all started when someone would tell another customer at the bar that he just spoke with a Mr. Tom Collins before they arrived and that Mr. Collins was bad-mouthing this customer. The customer would become upset, asking where they can find this Mr. Collins to settle this matter and learn from the joke-teller that Mr. Collins had just left to another bar around the corner. The fuming customer would attempt to find Mr. Collins at the next bar, and folks who understood the joke would repeat the same story, sending him bar after bar searching for this Mr. Tom Collins.

This joke was so popular in 1895 that bartenders began serving Tom Collins drinks when a patron became overly outraged or upset about something. These drinks would aid in smoothing over a potentially volatile situation with a bit of levity and the clink of glasses.

Now we have all sorts of variations on the Tom Collins, and you are free to use the spirit of your preference. Follow our recipe below.