Vodka Collins: Tall, Refreshing, and an Easy Cocktail to Mix Up

By Colleen Graham

Updated 10/01/18

The Spruce
Ratings (37)
  • Total: 3 mins
  • Prep: 3 mins
  • Cook: 0 mins
  • Yield: 1 cocktail (1 serving)
Nutritional Guidelines (per serving)
148 Calories
0g Fat
13g Carbs
1g Protein
(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)

The Vodka Collins is a simple, refreshing, and popular mixed drink. It is a nice drink when you feel like enjoying your favorite vodka in a long, slow cocktail.

In keeping with the formula of the John and Tom Collins, the Vodka Collins is a sweet and sour drink topped with club soda. While collins' vary by base spirit, using everything from gin to whiskey and beyond, this recipe opts for the obvious.

It mixes up quickly and is the perfect happy hour drink for drinkers who love a little vodka from time to time.

Ingredients

Steps to Make It

  1. Gather the ingredients.

    ingredients
    The Spruce

  2. Pour the vodka, lemon juice, and syrup in a collins glass with ice cubes. Stir thoroughly.

    add liquids
    The Spruce 

  3. Top with club soda.

    add club soda
     The Spruce

  4. Garnish with a cherry and orange slice.

More Tips for Making a Great Vodka Collins

Choose your vodka. While almost any vodka will do, this drink is rather transparent and it will only be as good as the liquor you pour into it. That said, you will find that your best Vodka Collins will come from a good vodka.

Also, you will find that the Vodka Collins is an ideal test drink for exploring new vodkas.

Take the sour mix shortcut. You can eliminate the lemon juice and simple syrup in this recipe and use a housemade sour mix instead. In either case, you can always adjust the sweet and sour proportions to find the taste that is perfect for your palate.

How Strong is the Vodka Collins?

You can make the Vodka Collins as tall or short as you like by adjusting the amount of club soda. On average, a 6-ounce drink will create a rather light mix with an alcohol content of around 9% ABV (18 proof).

More Collins Recipes

The recipes that are commonly called “Collins” drinks vary primarily due to the base liquor and, on occasion (mostly in modern recipes), a few extra ingredients. Think of the collins as a tall drink with sweet, sour, and a base liquor that is topped with club soda.