Tall, Refreshing, and Easy Vodka Collins Cocktail

Written by
Colleen Graham
Colleen Graham is a cocktail expert, professional bartender, and cookbook author with over 10 years of experience in the food-writing world.
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Colleen Graham
Updated 09/17/20
Vodka Collins cocktail garnished with orange and cherry
The Spruce
  • Total: 3 mins
  • Prep: 3 mins
  • Cook: 0 mins
  • Serving: 1 serving
Nutritional Guidelines (per serving)
148 Calories
0g Fat
13g Carbs
1g Protein
See Full Nutritional Guidelines Hide Full Nutritional Guidelines
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Nutrition Facts
Servings: 1
Amount per serving
Calories 148
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 0g 0%
Saturated Fat 0g 0%
Cholesterol 0mg 0%
Sodium 639mg 28%
Total Carbohydrate 13g 5%
Dietary Fiber 1g 3%
Protein 1g
Calcium 11mg 1%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
(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 choice when you feel like enjoying your favorite vodka in a long, slow cocktail.

In keeping with the formula of the well-known John and Tom Collins, which use bourbon whiskey and gin as the spirits, respectively, the vodka collins recipe makes a sweet and sour drink topped with club soda. While collins drinks vary by base spirit, and indeed their adaptability is part of their charm and appeal, this recipe opts for the obvious. 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—there's no way to hide a less-than-stellar vodka choice. That being said, you don't have to overthink this. Any of the popular premium vodkas are good options. Choose wisely when it comes to budget-friendly vodkas; they're not all worthy of clear drinks like the vodka collins.

Whatever vodka you choose, this beverage mixes up quickly and almost everyone likes it, making it just about the perfect happy hour choice for drinkers who love a little vodka from time to time.

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 ounces vodka
  • 1 ounce lemon juice
  • 1/2 ounce simple syrup
  • Splash of club soda
  • Garnish: orange slice
  • Garnish: maraschino cherry

Steps to Make It

  1. Gather the ingredients.

    ingredients for vodka collins
    The Spruce

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

    Liquids poured into a collins glass with ice
    The Spruce 

  3. Top with a splash of club soda.

    Club soda poured on top of vodka
    The Spruce

  4. Garnish with a cherry and orange slice. Enjoy!

Tips

Add a splash of flavor: Use one of your favorite flavored vodkas. Any fruit flavor works well, though it's not the best drink for whipped cream and other sweet vodkas.

Take the sour mix shortcut: 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 best suits you.

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 percent ABV (18 proof).

Recipe Variations

The variations for the collins family of drinks is pretty endless. Here are some of our favorites.