Midcentury Tom Collins

The Tom Collins had yet another life after World War II. That’s like four lives now! The postwar suburbanization of the United States, combined with the lasting effects of Prohibition, severely narrowed the once-massive canon of American drinks–but the Collins remained. In this period, it solidified into the classic form we know today; meanwhile, the John Collins ditched genever in favor of American whiskey. I added the Angostura bitters based on a 1949 recipe from the Esquire Handbook for Hosts.

INGREDIENTS

1½ oz. London dry gin*
¾ oz. lemon juice
½ oz. rich simple syrup
4 drops saline
2 dashes orange bitters
Club soda

Garnish: orange slice and cherry on pick, Angostura bitters

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ABV LEVEL

Combine all but club soda and Angostura bitters in a cocktail shaker. Add ice and shake for 15 seconds. Strain into a Collins glass over regular ice cubes. Top with club soda and add a straw. Garnish with an orange-and-cherry "flag" and dash Angostura bitters on top, if desired.

*John Collins variation: replace gin with rye or bourbon