Production identity
Category: classic cocktail · Style: Collins & Fizz · Yield: 1 service · Portion: 1 drink
Glass / vessel: House-appropriate glassware · Ice: As specified by service method · Garnish: As required by house spec
Formula — 1× target batch
Scaling table
Scaling is arithmetic, not permission to ignore service behavior. Verify the 1× formula first, then make a controlled intermediate batch before a 50× event batch.
Method
- Add the noncarbonated ingredients to a shaker with ice.
- Shake until thoroughly chilled.
- Strain into a collins glass.
- Top with the carbonated ingredient, stir once, garnish, and serve.
Working numbers
Measured pre-dilution liquid represented in ounce-based ingredients: 5.5 oz where applicable. Dilution control: Training target: establish approximately 20–25% added-water dilution by starting liquid volume, then calibrate to house ice, starting temperature and glass temperature by weighing or volume-checking a controlled sample.
Storage: Single-service formula. Prepare to order unless the Academy batch version explicitly authorizes advance production. Shelf-life rule: Not a holding specification. Perishable ingredients follow the venue’s approved date/time and food-safety procedure; discard any component that is out of standard.
Labeling: For single service, use the current controlled house recipe. For any batch, label identity, version, production date/time, responsible person and the approved discard/review point.
Critical controls
- Measure each ingredient with the specified tool; do not free-pour during calibration.
- Control ingredient and vessel temperature before changing dilution.
- Taste the finished drink at service condition, not the warm undiluted mix.
- Use only the written substitution path; product changes can alter sugar, ABV, bitterness and final balance.
Production verification
Make the formula exactly as written before adjusting it. Record actual packaged or finished yield, starting ingredient temperature where it materially affects the result, and the service portion. Compare the finished sample against the sensory target: Tall, tart, refreshing. If the formula includes Gin, Fresh lemon juice, Simple syrup, Soda water, verify that each product is the intended house specification; a substitution can change sugar, acidity, bitterness, aroma, alcohol strength or texture.
Sensory standard
The target is Tall, tart, refreshing. Evaluate the beverage at its intended serving temperature and dilution. The standard should be descriptive enough that two trained bartenders can compare results and identify which axis—sweetness, acidity, bitterness, alcohol, aroma, body, carbonation, temperature or dilution—is outside the house target.
Supporting professional reading
From the Keep ’Em Coming Back books
Behind the Bar
This page is a practical extension of Volume 4. The book explains the reasoning; this resource helps put it to work.
Gin · Collins & Fizz
Tom Collins is a tall, tart, refreshing collins & fizz recipe. Use this page as a working specification, then test the exact brands, ice, glass, price, and service conditions before adopting it as a house drink.
Single-serve spec
• 2 oz (60 ml) Gin
• 1 oz (30 ml) Fresh lemon juice
• 0.5 oz (15 ml) Simple syrup
• 2 oz (60 ml) Soda water
Method
• Add the noncarbonated ingredients to a shaker with ice.
• Shake until thoroughly chilled.
• Strain into a collins glass.
• Top with the carbonated ingredient, stir once, garnish, and serve.
Shared testing and documentation controls: Bar recipe operating standard →
Recipe-specific working guide
How Tom Collins works in a real bar
Tom Collins is a tall, tart, refreshing collins & fizz built around gin. This rewrite treats the listed specification as a working service standard: every measure, preparation choice, product, temperature, and finishing step must be tested together before the venue adopts it.
Ingredient functions
• 2 oz Gin carries the base profile and determines how firmly the drink reads through dilution. Treat the exact product as part of the specification rather than assuming every bottle in the category behaves identically.
• 1 oz Fresh lemon juice provides the bright edge that keeps sweetness and alcohol from feeling heavy. Measure it, protect it from warm holding, and replace tired juice rather than trying to hide oxidation with more syrup.
• 0.5 oz Simple syrup rounds the acid and shapes body. Label the syrup concentration and preparation date so bartenders are not unknowingly balancing against different products.
• 2 oz Soda water lengthens the drink and contributes lift. Keep it cold, add it after aggressive mixing, and avoid repeated stirring that strips carbonation before the drink reaches the guest.
Technique and failure points
Tom Collins is a shaken drink, so temperature and dilution must be created before the pour. Load the measured noncarbonated ingredients first, add sound ice, seal the tins, and shake until the exterior is cold. Strain promptly into the approved serving glass rather than allowing the drink to continue diluting in the tin.
Failure laboratory
Version control
Do not silently change the working formula. Record the recipe version, date, reason for change, test result and person approving the update. If a brand or product specification changes, rerun the sensory and cost check before treating the substitution as equivalent. A formula is professional only when the team can reproduce the same intended result and explain why a revision was made.