Tuesday, August 2, 2016

August Cocktail of the Month: Tom Collins



Now that we’re moving into the dog days of summer, we here at Bryant’s know that on a really hot and humid afternoon you just might not be in the mood for a cocktail as heavy as a Manhattan or as rich as a Brandy Alexander (although if you are, we got you covered!). No, what you’re looking for is a light, refreshing, and crisp sipping drink. Thus, we think it an appropriate time to offer as our August Cocktail of the Month one of the all-time warm weather classics: the Tom Collins.

You just may scoff at the idea of a Tom Collins, a drink that has had its reputation (and deliciousness) ruined over the years thanks (or no thanks) to things like sour mix and a mistaken belief that it’s a simple and boring cocktail. Sure, it’s simple, made of only gin, lemon juice, sugar, and soda water, but oftentimes the simplest drinks are the best, and definitely not boring (see the Manhattan or the Brandy Alexander, for example). We think it’s received a bum rap.

But don’t just take our word for it. The cocktail world at large agrees with us. Back in the 1950s, David Embury said of the Tom Collins: “This is a long drink, to be consumed slowly with reverence and meditation.” More recently, Gary Regan said that it is “a drink worthy of more respect than it gets” and that “this refreshing quaff can be delightful in hot weather.” And Dale DeGroff, “King Cocktail” himself, has hailed it as “a wonderful summer drink that’s much more interesting than a gin and tonic.” But if those endorsements haven’t convinced you, wait until you hear about this cocktail’s origins. You’ll never think this drink boring again once you discover its association with, of all things, a nineteenth century hoax.

The story of the Tom Collins begins in the early 1800s at Limmer’s Hotel in London, where patrons enjoyed a Gin Punch invented by the resident bartender, John Collins. The drink, or a variant of it, made its way to New York City by the 1850s, and its recipe first appeared in print as, you guessed it, the John Collins in an 1869 book called Haney’s Steward & Barkeeper’s Manual. But by the time Jerry Thomas, the father of American mixology, committed the drink to print in the 1876 edition of his book How to Mix Drinks, the name had changed to Tom Collins. Wait! How did that happen? Why aren’t we drinking the John Collins these days? Who was Tom Collins?

It’s possible that the name change occurred because, in those days, the drink was most often made with Old Tom Gin, a gin that’s slightly sweeter than your typical London Dry. Makes sense, right? However, in changing the name Jerry Thomas might have wanted to capitalize on a recent cultural phenomenon. In 1874, a practical joke ran rampant in the saloons of New York and Philadelphia. Here’s what would happen: A fella would approach another fella at a bar and tell him a man named Tom Collins was badmouthing him at a nearby establishment. Enraged, the man would then go to that other bar looking for Tom Collins, a man who didn’t exist. Sometimes the patrons at other bars would be in on the joke, and send the angry man on a wild goose chase around town. This became all the rage, so much so that newspapers even printed fake stories about Tom Collins sightings.

We recommend that you don’t attempt this trick these days—it’s silly, cruel, and you’re liable to end up with a lawsuit on your hands. Plus, we all know where you can find a Tom Collins this month. Here at Bryant’s!


Stop in between 5pm and 8pm Sunday through Thursday and get to know the Tom Collins for just $6 all month long. No joke!

No comments: