The din of the crowded Vietnam street fills my ear. Sweet notes of toffee and vanilla linger on my tongue. I have just stepped out of church, and I have a submarine to catch. Lost Spirits Las Vegas is a spirit tasting tour in immersive environments.

I am an adventurer in a world created by Lost Spirits Las Vegas. Dubbed the Willy Wonka of Distilling or even an A-booze-ment park, this experience showcases a perfect marriage of science, alcohol, and imagination. In other words, it’s a tasting of their world-class rums and brandies, set against a backdrop of foggy nooks, city streets lined with paper lanterns, and a submarine voyage 20,000 leagues under the sea.

To further set expectations, this is not a fictionalized world overflowing with puzzles to solve, complex lore, and characters to engage with. There’s no narrative here—because this isn’t fictional to Lost Spirits Las Vegas. This is where they distill their navy rum; this is how they distill their navy rum. Walking the premises, you will often see their owners working, solving problems, and doing what they do best: innovating.

The Locked Door

As I kneel inside the chapel where Sister Brandy serves me a measure of the Angel’s Share (portioned from what Lost Spirits colloquially refer to as an Angel’s Sucker), it becomes quite clear to me how much of a religion alcohol truly is. Tradition and gospel keep the rules of distilling sacred and “pure”. For example, bourbon is reserved for products made within the United States—if it’s made outside of the United States, it cannot be called Bourbon. Further, it must contain 51% corn and be aged in new, charred oak. If the gospel of whiskey says this must be so, who’s to argue? Who’s to dare defy tradition with egregious innovation?

Well, Bryan Davis is one—and the co-founder of Lost Spirits Las Vegas, Joanne Haruta, is another. Started on Haruta’s father’s land, adjacent to an artichoke farm, Davis tinkered at creating some of the first, real innovation to the alcohol industry since the 13^th century. Sure, there may have been improvements to the process—but who else can claim to create the taste of a twenty-year barrel aged spirit in only six days?

Davis, now the inventor and CEO of Lost Spirits, saw the key to this as not just the esterification and extraction of the spirit, but also the interaction of the two which creates the complex flavors that can arise and vary with age. While I don’t dive deep into the science here, he’s basically using esterification to create short-chain esters, then firing protons at the wood to form medium-chain esters all while extracting unwanted chemicals, then combining the short and medium chains to form long-chained esters. It’s these long chains that create honey and tobacco flavors that give aged rum its characteristic charm. And it only takes six days in Davis’ reactor. A true miracle.

The Strange Face

That’s all great—but I’m sure you’re wondering: does it really taste like a twenty-year rum? Well, I’d say hell yeah. And if you don’t believe just me—trust the awards. They consistently win Best in Class and Gold Medals for their whiskeys and rums—and that’s not even touching their awards for Best Distillery Tour (we’ll get to that next). But I’ll give you a taste of what we were able to try on our tour.

We started with the Japonisme, with hints of Okinawa black sugar and charred oak—tasting of the caramelized sugars of crème brulee. The 90 proof left a heat on our tongue that was quickly replaced by the sweetness of the sugar, which lingered well into the next phase of the tour. The Cuban Inspired Anejo Blanco was second, mixing Grade A molasses with toasted and charred American oak to create a perfectly layered rum, reminiscent of a more Latin-styled rum. Third, the 122-proof Navy Style Rum, packed the strongest heat, but with it, had the most sustained finish—layering the sugars from the molasses and English dark treacle in a perfect barrage of gunpowder, vanilla, and honey. The fourth and final was the 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea—a 102 proof rum made with brine from the Pacific Ocean with molasses, creating a rum that feels like a bonfire against the ocean air, toasted marshmallow and pine mixing together to create a moment in time by the beach.

At a small upcharge, you can book a seat at the Dorian Grey, a cozy den hidden away behind the bustling streets. Little alcoves can hide guests away, enveloping them in fog and low lamp light to enjoy one of the most special drinks in Lost Spirits Las Vegas. Here, the Framboise can be tasted, their Brandy made with California raspberries and mixed with oak, creating a spirit that harkens back to childhood picking berries from fields with little responsibility.

The Landing on the Island

But sure, you can order one of Davis’s Navy Rum from the Lost Spirits’ store—why travel all the way to Vegas to pick up a bottle? Well, if the introduction or the images in this review didn’t already spoil the surprise, Lost Spirits Las Vegas is an adult playground, a portal to another world, a step inside the lab of a mad scientist willing to defy convention in the name of progress.

We can all agree that Guinness is better when it’s drunk in Ireland (okay, maybe there’s science behind that one)—well, how about a scotch drunk in a castle in Scotland? Well, Davis explains that you cannot put atmosphere in a bottle, no matter how hard you try. Thus, Lost Spirits Las Vegas offers tours to give you the experience with the bottle. No one said you couldn’t build the atmosphere around the bottle.

In early 2017, Lost Spirits Distillery opened the doors to the Los Angeles distillery, offering guests a chance to be greeted by talking triceratops topiaries before boarding a Willy Wonka-esque boat only to end up at what appears to be a 19^th century opium den. While the pandemic saw the LA-based distillery close its doors, a window opened in Las Vegas, and Lost Spirits joined the Area 15 family.

Here, the tour continues, offering you the same level of showmanship and immersion as Los Angeles with more of an open-world feel. Whereas Los Angeles offered a linear experience, the Vegas distillery starts off guided, only to deposit you in an area to explore on your own, to create memories, to enjoy the alcohol, and to board a submarine before resurfacing to join the world you left behind.

The Thing in the Forest

If you’re still reading this, then I offer you one last chance to turn back now, to experience Lost Spirits Las Vegas and uncover the wonder and magic that it offers unspoiled, leaving the surprise to be experienced. But if you need one final moment of convincing, then you may read on.

The experience may begin at Area 15, but participants are quickly whisked away in rickshaws towards a warehouse just off the Area 15 property. It’s here that the magic is revealed. A locked door leading to a hidden red button reveals the door to the distillery and with it, the four to five tastings listed above. Guests will explore facsimiles of foggy London streets, illuminated by lamplight, the streets of Vietnam, illuminated by lantern, and the laboratory of Lost Spirits Las Vegas, illuminated by florescence. Each realm has its stories to tell, and each has some, if not many, things to teach you. Just make sure you keep your eyes and ears open.

At this point, Lost Spirits Las Vegas offers you a more open-world experience, meaning that your guide will abandon you to your own whims at this point. This is a perfect opportunity to explore the details, taking in the aesthetic, or finding some of the hidden tasting rooms (the Dorian Grey was the only one open when we went, but the Lady Vain looked prime for expansion one day). Take some photos—without flash—and enjoy yourself. This is your time to really savor the alcohol, and I appreciate that you don’t feel rushed at this point.

When you are ready, a short submarine ride will take you 20,000 leagues under the sea to my favorite room: a massive parlor reminiscent of the grandest hall in Rapture.  Here, you will taste the rum that bears the classic literary adventure’s name and nestle into regal armchairs, watching human-faced fish swim past the windows while chandeliers swing back and forth overhead, threatening to lull you to sleep with the nonexistent tide. It’s a surreal space fueled by the power of imagination and suggestion, one with the power and charm to inspire the most blocked writer back to a Shakespearean proliferation.

The Man Alone

Lost Spirits Las Vegas is a theme park reverie in waking; it’s a world perfectly curated to elevate the alcohol served in its halls, it is taste brought to life. Not only have they created world-renowned spirits, but they have created a distillery tour which is a world unto itself. As it is always expanding, growing, and learning, make sure you visit soon—and then go again. Bryan Davis is a man shattering convention and creating his own dogma; Lost Spirits Las Vegas is only the beginning of what lies ahead.

For more information on Lost Spirits Las Vegas, check out their website, Facebook and Instagram pages. For information about similar events, check out our Event Calendar.

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Lost Spirits Las Vegas is an A-booze-ment park located in Las Vegas, NV.