Wondrich also points out that this was a barman's tale because Thomas was born in 1830 and would have started bartending in the 1840s. Instead, he recounts the story that "Professor" Jerry Thomas often told, which claimed he named it after two pet mice.
In cocktail historian David Wondrich's book "Imbibe!" (2nd edition, 2015), he makes no mention of Egan. " A play was staged shortly after its publication in 1821, and it's said that Egan named the drink as a cross-promotion for its debut. Great Tip: Use liberal amounts of Trader Vics Tom & Jerry Batter as a glaze for baked ham. Fill the mug with boiling water, hot coffee or hot milk. Preheat a 6 oz mug, add batter, rum (or brandy/rum mix) and stir. TOM AND JERRY BATTER The best ever 12 eggs, separated 1/2 tsp salt 3 lbs powdered sugar 1 lb butter, room temperature 1 tsp each vanilla and rum flavoring (also may use brandy flavoring) 1 tsp mace 1 tsp nutmeg 1 tsp cloves 1 tsp allspice Beat egg whites until stiff, add salt. One story says that the drink was named after British journalist Pierce Egan's book "Life in London: Or The Day and Night Scenes of Jerry Hawthorne, Esq., and His Elegant Friend Corinthian Tom. Directions Tom & Jerry Recipe: 2 heaping teaspoon of Trader Vics Tom & Jerry Batter, 1 oz dark rum or (1/2 oz rum, 1/2 oz brandy), hot boiling water, hot coffee or hot milk. (It's possible the characters reference the drink, but that's up for debate.) Contrary to what you might think, this one doesn't refer to the classic cartoon characters. Cocktail origin stories are typically interesting to trace, and there are often multiple accounts.