Cinzano of the vermouth market in Europe was measured in the low single digits, sales that placed it a distant second to Martini. As a result of a 1997 merger, Grand Metropolitan became Diageo; two years later, Diageo sold Cinzano to the privately held Gruppo Campari. The Cinzano bicycling team had a central role in the film "Breaking Away". Cinzano was well known in Britain for its humorous television advertisements featuring Leonard Rossiter and Joan Collins. One of these featured the pair on a plane journey, with Rossiter accidentally hitting the "recline" switch on Collins chair, causing her to spill a
Tom Collins Tom Collins The Tom Collins is a cocktail made from gin, lemon juice, sugar, and carbonated water. First memorialized in writing in 1876 by Jerry Thomas, the "father of American mixology", this drink is typically served in a Collins glass over ice. A "Collins mix" can be bought premixed at stores and enjoyed alone (like a soft drink) or with gin. In August 1891, British physician Sir Morell Mackenzie wrote an article in the influential 19th century magazine "Fortnightly Review" claiming that England was the originating country for the Tom Collins cocktail and a person named John Collins was its