Aviation
45 ml Gin, 15 ml Maraschino liqueur, 15 ml Lemon juice, 7.5 ml Crème de violette, 1 Maraschino cherry
Photo: Tom Collins by Will Shenton · CC BY-SA 3.0 · All credits
Ingredients
Measures below are multiplied for 6 drinks. Unmeasurable amounts such as “a splash” are left as written.
- 300 ml Measuring jug A measuring jug: pour to the 300 ml line. Gin
- 150 ml Jigger Three large sides (3 x 50 ml) of a standard jigger. Lemon juice - Freshly squeezed
- 90 ml Jigger One large side (50 ml) and one small side (25 ml) of a standard jigger, plus a tablespoon. Simple syrup
- 600 ml Measuring jug A measuring jug: pour to the 600 ml line. Soda water - Chilled
- 6 twists Lemon twist (optional)
Measured in Millilitres (UK). Sign in to read these in American measures. Print a kitchen card at this size.
What the jigger, the spoons and the jug hold, in millilitres and in fluid ounces, is on the measures reference.
Quick version
- Shake the gin, lemon and syrup with ice.
- Strain into ice-filled glass, top with soda and stir once.
Method
Pitcher (6 drinks)Pitcher (6 drinks) - about 1.14 l of measured ingredients, before ice and dilution.
Timings and per-glass steps below are written for one drink and are not scaled. A full jug takes longer to chill, so stir or shake until it is properly cold rather than by the clock, and pour over fresh ice one glass at a time.
- Shake the gin, lemon juice and simple syrup with ice until the tin frosts.
- Strain into a Collins glass packed with fresh ice.
- Top with chilled soda water and stir once, gently, to keep the bubbles.
- Garnish with a lemon twist.
Serve it
Volumes in this story are multiplied for the size above, along with the ingredients. Years, ratios and the capacities of glasses and jugs are left as written.
Tom Collins
A gin sour lengthened with soda: the most refreshing thing you can do with a bottle of gin and five minutes. It has been served in tall glasses since the 1870s, and there is still nothing better on a hot afternoon or a long lunch.
Getting it right
Fresh lemon juice only. The bottled sort tastes of the bottle, and with three things in the glass there is nowhere to hide it. Sweeten to taste - a proper Tom Collins is sharp rather than syrupy - and build it in the glass over plenty of ice: gin, lemon and syrup first, then the soda poured in gently and stirred once. The tall glass matters more than it sounds, since soda loses its sparkle fastest in a short one. A slice of lemon and a cherry is traditional, and rather charming.
Tasting notes
Zesty and effervescent, with the gin arriving at the very end of the sip. Cold, long, and gone before you noticed you were thirsty.
More Gin cocktails
Bee's Knees
50 ml Gin, 20 ml Lemon juice, 20 ml Honey syrup, 1 Lemon twist
Bramble
50 ml Gin, 25 ml Lemon juice, 12.5 ml Simple syrup, 15 ml Crème de mûre, 2 berries Blackberry