Lost Ark Distilling Company

Lost Ark is a fun little rum distillery that offers tours, at least 8 types of rum, mixed drinks, snacks, and live music. The tour lasts an hour or so and includes a tasting of several types of rum (pictured) as well as a tasting glass. The owner gave the tour and was very informative about the company and distillation process. The dark, hazelnut, and coffee rums were probably my favorite. I also had a South Manhattan which was tasty yet strong, and the Campfire which I really liked.

We had a really informative tour from the beginning of the business to the present day and how rum particularly is made. Brad the owner was our tour guide. We sampled a whiskey which was really tasty and then a plethora of choices of rum which we got to sample. A remarkable experience for not very much money and they give you a coupon for a cocktail at the end of the experience.

Great experience! I booked this tour for a group of 12 and everyone loved it. We started in the distillery with Brad telling us the process of how spirits are made. This was actually very interesting and we all were impressed with the presentation. Afterwards, we did a tasting and got a glass which we could each take home. Our group then went to the seating area where we enjoyed great cocktails and listened to some good music by a small band that was there. I highly recommend this tour!

I did the rum tasting with a couple of friends and we absolutely LOVED it. The owner, Brad, was so engaging and really made the experience fun and exciting. My husband has Caribbean roots, so I look forward to bringing him back for another tour. Highly recommend the spiced rum for purchase and will forward to my husband enjoying good rum that he can get domestically. Also, it appears the business has a nice hangout spot where you can play games, bring your pets, partake of their bar, order food in…it’s really a great setup. Looking forward to continuing to support this business!!

Tour and drinks were great; bartenders are awesome. Please consider AC or more fans in the seating area and distillery. I had to quit the tour and go to the bar because it was so hot! Also, Home Slyce was great, but they were very confused about my gluten-free order.

I signed up for the distillery tour with a friend this weekend and we had a blast! The space is fun and inviting. Brad is an awesome tour guide. The drinks were very tasty. They have a a convenient system for ordering and delivering food from nearby restaurants. And extra bonus, we got to hear some live music from a classic rock band before we left. Overall had a great time! Hope to come back for more events in the future!

We booked a distillery tour when we were visiting family in the area. Best decision!! The owner, Brad, personally spent an hour with us on the tour explaining the history and process of distilling their rum. The tour ended with a tasting with a souvenir glass and a coupon for a free cocktail. This was a fantastic experience and I hope we can make it back. Highly recommend!!

Love Lost Ark. The staff is super friendly and will learn your name fast if you're a regular. Cocktails are all delicious and they rotate seasonally. Their rums are tasty and smooth and their bourbon is one of my favorites. They always have creative and fun events going on like cigar nights, trivia, and ballroom and Latin dancing.

I have been on a few distillery tours now (some in Pittsburgh, and OBX); I was so excited to see a local one pop-up in my social media feed last month. I'm dissapointed in myself for not knowing about Lost Ark sooner! This tour was certainly the best value: packed with information and, of course, alcohol ;) [$25 per person, $10 for non-drinkers and the underage over 12 haha] You learn the foundations of what makes whiskey, whiskey vs bourbon, or rum, etc; the step by step process they go through distilling their products; the story of how their distillery came to be; and other fun facts along the way. It's really neat getting to see the equipment up-close, really gives you an appreciation for the scale (size, amount of raw product, time...) it takes to produce things we consume so quickly! Then you move on to the tasting. You really get a whole line up of their products, I don't think I've been on another tour that gives you as many different items to taste. And it's not just lining up shots haha It really is educational, from what goes into each item and how to properly taste it. Some of my group, myself included, were feeling very 'relaxed' by the end of the tour ;) I absolutely loved that you get to keep your Lost Ark glass from the tasting! We've been using them at home to enjoy some of the items we purchased. Of course the fun isn't over just yet. Included in your tour ticket is a drink from the bar as well! They have lots to choose from; I went with the Hoco Sipper (bourbon, black tea, lemon, sugar, seltzer, usually comes with spiced cherry rum float, but I'm allergic to cherry so I asked for it without cherry). SOO tasty! I will be back for more of those :) We had dinner reservations up the road to get to, but they had live music getting set up as we were finishing up our drinks. And you can get food from HomeSlyce delivered to your table, using a qr code. So we will definitely be back to try that sometime too. Free surface parking, chill atmosphere, friendly people dedicated to their craft :) Love that we have something like this here now! Will have to take a bottle down next time we go to an alumni event at SMCM for a photo op with the Dove hahaha

Visited the distillery for their Awesome Drag Brunch Holiday event- ticket price included the show & one cocktail; was a bit dismayed to discover during the event they had special brunch drink options only available & we wouldn't be able to select some of the core drinks I saw when researching the location online- another woe was discovering they were out of bourbon & could only offer the rum based drinks though the staff were super friendly & personable, allowing me to sample the various rums to best determine which one would mix best with just basic ginger beer- I opted for the tropical spiced rum (tasted delicious but drink seemed a bit on the watered down side-insert Bob's Burger Brunch Ladies drink rule joke here haha) The event was fun; from what I saw there didn't seem to be any bad seats- the queens worked the room really well- everything was spaced out & clean, creating a welcoming vibe- would return to do a tasting flight- as the quality & taste profiles of the rum surprised me (not a rum drinker, they had some pop to them)-and the staff were so great I'd love to learn more about the distillery on their tour.

I love coming to Lost Ark. I've been for live music, trivia, or just a regular night to enjoy a drink or two. The bartenders are always welcoming and friendly, and the drinks are so creative and do not disappoint! It's such a gem and I love sharing an evening with friends here or coming on my own when I just need to decompress. I've yet to do a tour but it is definitely on my list. They have a few new special events they've been incorporating as well like cigar nights, drag brunches, etc... every time is a great time. Definitely one of my favorite bars in Columbia!

We went back a few weeks ago because we found out they do karaoke every third Friday of the month. There was a live band that played music while waiting for brave souls to volunteer. We were honestly surprised there were not more people there. There was a limited amount of songs you could sing, but it was a lot of fun. They also have seasonal drinks and the fall ones were delicious! Very fun atmosphere and I wish more people would show this business love.

Good if you love potent, alcohol focused drinks and a loud atmosphere where you can't hear yourself or others talk. My group and I were so excited to come and check out locally produced spirits- their Winter menu looked appealing and had an ample amount of adventurous and classic options to choose from. HOWEVER, after us getting 11 drinks out of this menu, I can confidently say this place adds more alcohol than other ingredients. It seems to sell their products, they put more of their alcohol rather than other juices, spices, or flavors. But, we as a whole felt this isn't representative to what others want- many individuals like myself prefer drinks that contain less alcohol, are sweeter, and focused on other ingredients. I recall asking the staff if there's any sweet options on the menu and they claimed none of theirs is! I feel a distillery or place selling mixed drinks needs to cater to all different palates and preferences. Others in my group were heavier drinkers and they even agreed this place doesn't skimp on alcohol. We all thought that the drinks weren't easy to sip but rather, finished for the sake of finishing since we paid for it. I usually order 2 drinks, but only got 1- the Locoquito drink. I sampled all other drinks from my group and nothing tasted good. Their Cuba Libre was by far the worst. My group couldn't even have a proper conversation because of the live music playing. I don't mind live music, but the speakers and all were so loud that we all couldn't hear each other. Plus, there were children everywhere in an alcoholic distillery. Potent and mediocre drinks with loud music, not enough seating, and uncomfortable seating overall. DRINKS TRIED: Charm City Daiquiri - probably the best? Planter's Punch- oddly okay but some sips tasted like medicine to me. To my friend, it was decent Cuba Libre- more alcohol, less coke in large glass. Awful don't get Mai Tai- decent but no wow factor; heavily spiked Lost Ark Spritz- my friend found this the best Virgin Mojito- only tasted like sprite Virgin Spiced Cider- just basic cider Roseberry Smash- looks good but heavily spiked Brûlée Banana Daiquiri- tastes lemony- misleading based on banana name Locoquito- too much alcohol to enjoy Coco Diablo- wouldn't be as bad if less potent

An awesome time at a local distillery! Loved the tour and the customer service. The owner, Brad, was very knowledgeable and very personable. He explained the process and the history of the business. The ambiance and setting is a nice combination of the distillery I'm the rear and seating in the front near the bar area. While they don't serve food on the premises, there are local food options that will deliver to the distillery. They have a pretty good selection of runs to choose from. Highly recommend going for the tour and tasting!

No food but you can order from different places to deliver it is a great thing to have . They have a nice step aldim provide tours for their distilling must go. It is half open place so you can enjoy the ambiance even more depends on the day you may have live music

I'm still in awe about this hidden gem in Columbia. 2 of my girlfriends and I came here on a Saturday evening. I made reservations to do a rum tasting tour ($15 p/p) and we had a wonderful experience. The location is somewhat in an industrial area and we walk into a room where there's a display of their rums and the bar. To the left is a large room where you can sit & relax and/or wait to be called for the tour. We met the owner who explained to us the history and the process of making their rum, label & packing and then onto the tasting. Total time was about 30-40 mins of the tour. Can't remember his name but really cool, down to earth guy. We tasted about 8 variations of their rum and boy oh boy, we loved them! (I couldn't try the hazelnut due to my allergy) You also get a drink ticket after the tour to get a choice of any cocktail or a shot. Because of the fun time @ tasting, us gals were hungry so thankfully right next door was a BBQ spot. We were able to order and walk back to Lost Ark to enjoy our food and complimentary cocktail. A 2 man-band was playing this particular Saturday and we ended up being there til close which was around 930-10. Enjoyed ourselves with 1 more drink and all arrived home safely. We plan on returning because it was such a great vibe, great staff and cool new rum cocktails to try & buy.

This place was awesome! I recently visited this distilling company for trivia night this past Thursday what a great time. My friends and I were called Sherlock Homies. You can shop with the group on Thursday, I recommend getting there as early as you can because seating fills up fairly quickly inside. Pick a team name give it to them upfront and enjoy trivia night! Anyone who's second-guessing or thinking if they should give trivia night a chance, go! I had a charm city daiquiri it was great! The gentleman behind the bar was super nice and seemed happy to answer any questions I had! I will definitely be back!

Friendly, attentive service at the bar. Variety of tasty spirits. 2 flights and a multi person mixer all delicious.

Cool place- from out of the immediate area but saw this as a cool place to visit. I love good unique drinks places and this one hit the mark. I preferred the chill atmosphere- loungy feel, great mixed drinks, live music nights or great music playing when not. Bartender was personable and welcoming. Loved the board game section. Really enjoyed my Cocoa Diablo and hubs had the Verrazano's brew. Had a taste of the banana rum and wow- had to grab a bottle. Really cool place with a chill vibe

Visited this place for my birthday weekend and enjoyed every bit of it. The distiller and owned was very knowledgeable about his product and rum in general. It was very informational to understand run and how lost ark came about. We enjoyed the tour and explanation of rum distillation from start to finish. The tour came with a ticket to enjoy a free drink as well and tasting that was amazing. The place has a nice set up with tvs and games to play after the tour. If you are into rum are just want a great fun time. I would highly recommend this place.

Came back again this evening.. this time I brought my family! The owner recognized me from the last time I came by myself and thanked me for coming back! I enjoyed myself again. Plus they had a new rum (that I purchased by the way)... lol I will come back again with another crew!

Holy crap. So we went to the brewery next door first, and then when it started to rain and there was no seating available inside for us to relocate to, we closed out our tab and started to make our way to the car...until we saw this distillery inside with seating available! I have no idea why there wasn't standing room only here -- this was far and away the most pleasant and enjoyable distillery experience I have ever had! We were greeted by a man whom we assume is the owner or one of the employees who has been with the company for a while, who gave us a great, brief overview of the distillery's history and what they are known for. We were offered a complimentary sampling of not one..two..but ALL of the different types of rum they produce! Amazing! We only took advantage of three of them, though, so we could enjoy a cocktail! The cocktails...y'all. they were INCREDIBLE. Not only that, but they were a mere 6-7 dollars each?? I don't exactly remember, but they were an INSANE value for the money and FLAVOR! they welcome outside food and have board games for you to come by and stay awhile. So I definitely suggest you do :)

Loved our visit here, especially on a cold Saturday when we could bring the mutt with us and enjoy being out with her. Also appreciated that you could have food delivered directly to our table from the restaurant down the street! My only criticism was they were out of bottles of the cream liquor that I had hoped to take home.

Amazing experience. It's been a long time since I've been in a distillery, but these folks know how to make anyone feel welcome. They had a line out the door with their signature cocktail offerings in honor of St. Patty's, so we had to give them a try. This distillery specializes in rum and bourbon spirits so it was a perfect spot for my wife and I. When we walked in and asked about the cocktails, they immediately offered a complimentary tasting with the lead distiller which we weren't going to pass down. Brad was incredibly knowledgeable and clearly cared deeply about his craft. He walked us from bourbon to the cream liquors and we were sold. Special shout out to the vanilla rum- this was a perfect covid coffee compliment for that meeting you don't want to be in. After the tasting, we had to try a cocktail. I went with the old fashioned with their bourbon and my wife went with the vanilla rum with a Diet Coke. I was lucky when I saw Ryan (one of the awesome team members) with a torch offering to smoke my old fashioned so I went for it. He was incredibly kind and talked through and process and methodology which yielded such a perfect cocktail. Could not rave enough about this find. Highly recommend for their amazing staff, fantastic spirts, or their cool garage door seating area.

Great service, nice ppl, great liquors!! Love the drinks and they even give you recipe cards. We had several drinks and bought some to take home so we can make them at home!! Nice spacious area also.

Not to be overly dramatic- but this place deserves 6 stars. We found this place on a random sunny Saturday and decided to check it out. Walking in, there was a bit of a line at the bar but we were quickly recommended to enjoy a tasting at an open slot. Owner Brad was there to walk us through each of the 7 options they had, starting with the whiskey, moving to the rums, and ending with a cream. His references and recommendations were spot on, and I kept finding a new favorite. Their bar features seasonal drinks, ranging from fruity cocktails, special mules, and creamy iced coffees, all featuring super fresh and local ingredients. In the end, the vanilla rum won my heart and I settled on a classic rum and Diet Coke. The bartender "apologized" for a heavy pour- that's when I knew she was my kind of people. My husband went with the old fashioned and Ryan stopped by to offer the signature smoke option. Not only was this insanely cool, but the drink was amazing and he explained to us the process and how to recreate at home. Aside from the amazing staff and drink options, this place features both indoor and outdoor seating, bar games, a dog friendly atmosphere, and awesome deals on bottles to take home. This has quickly become a new favorite.

I feel really bad giving a one star review, because the one cocktail we were able to drink before we decided to leave was really good. But the spirits don't make up for the horrible experience we had. They promote their distillery as having a cocktail lounge with live music and fancy drinks, and instead I spent over an hour trying to hear my husband over screeching children and a bunch of older adults doing shots and cheering loudly while their kids ran rampant. The bartenders were snippy (honestly I don't blame them) and made us feel unwelcome. The atmosphere was pretty much that of a dive bar not that of a distillery charging $8-$12 for cocktails. There are plenty of other distilleries in Maryland with award winning spirits with much friendlier staff and much better atmospheres. Skip this one.

The owner provides an excellent, informative tour of this small distillery. Then! Then you get to try the amazing spirits they distill! My friends and I didn't find 1 spirit we did NOT like! All were yummy! I had to go home with a case! Plan to enjoy the bottles I bought for a while and then go back for more

Bourbon and rum distillery in an industrial park. Small bar and seating at tables for about 20-30 people. Rustic decor with vats exposed. Bourbon was average. Recommend you try the rum flights or mixed drinks if you are a rum drinker. Can bring in your own food and there is very good barbecue next door.

My amazing GF brought me here as part of my birthday weekend celebration. We had a great time and learned a lot about Lost Ark's rums, liqueurs and their small batch bourbon. The team here was very friendly and informative! We did a tasting as well and really enjoyed learning while sampling their product line. Everything tasted amazing and they didn't try to pressure us into buying a bottle. All of the cocktails were inexpensive and delicious too! They were all under $10 from what I recall. I'll definitely be back on the next warm Saturday. Lost Ark is definitely a gem tucked away in Columbia, MD. I truly enjoyed my experience there!

I am a rum lover so of course this place was on my bucket list to visit. We scheduled a tour for noon when they first opened and we were lucky, no one else signed up. We had a personal tour of the facilities and the place was immaculate. Its amazing how rum is produced and bottle. After the tour we sampled all of the different rums. When other customers walked in the owner did not rush us. The coffee rum was good and so was the corn whiskey. Yes we purchased a couple of bottles and as soon as we arrived home we opened the bottle to make drinks. Too bad they don't ship bottles but thats okay that gives us a reason to come back.

Brad is ABSOLUTELY the best! Very personable and thoroughly explained the entire distilling process. The cocktails are amazing. The tasting is great, all of the spirits are clean. If you are questioning if you should visit, DEFINITELY do it, you won't regret it, I feel like I just made a new friend. Will definitely be back for the Bourbon!

Had a wonderful tour with the owner - just fascinating. A real treat. Totally recommend this distillery.

Excellent location amazing staff and the rum they make is excellent. Not a big rum drinker but enjoyed the whole process. Mixed drinks are great they make will be returning very soon

I just stumbled upon this place and WHAT A FIND! New to Maryland and my friend from San Diego and I enjoyed some great cocktails! The owner/distiller/bartender was super nice and made us feel right at home. GREAT SPOT! GREAT PRODUCT!

Great experience. Tasty elixirs. Do a tasting and enjoy their natural flavored liquors, they really nailed the flavors using only natural real ingredients. We ended up using their volume special and drinking a few mixed drinks. Yum!

Hidden gem in Columbia! The toasted hazelnut coffee and chocolate adonia berry rums are delicious. A must try for anyone looking for something unique to do in Howard county!

Amazing!!Fantadtic!!Delicious!!Delightful!!! Not sure which I liked more, the staff or the rum. We had so much fun drinking and laughing. My advice is DO NOT MISS THIS GEM!!!!

Good atmosphere friendly staff good alcohol and deff worth revisiting. Whenever my in laws show up we make a point to get there for refilling. Our stocks and have a few drinks. The tasting bar is pretty cool and the mixed drinks aren't skimped on.

What a great place to grab a drink! It's got a very rustic meets modern vibe, with phenomenal cocktails to sip on. That said, the spirits and liqueurs themselves are delicious enough to drink on their own. The staff is unbelievably friendly- it's no surprise they have established several regulars that come through the door to their favorite drink already waiting. They also have live music on the weekends, which is such an awesome addition to an already great place to drink. I can't say enough good things about Lost Ark Distillery. Go check it out, and ask for Joe or Ryan! You won't regret it!

Really friendly staff-- Have awesome items to sample that my group liked. The first distillery in HoCo, and they source local for their ingredients where possible. Good luck to them--they're right next to the Hysteria brewery. And if you don't drink alcohol, they have Coke/Zero, iced tea, ginger beer!

Wonderful. The tour was super informative and because its in small groups, its very personalized. I learned a lot during the tasting and the spirits were delicious. I'm usually not a huge fan of rum, but there were some amazing ones in there. Visit!

Seriously awesome! Great flavors and products. One of these days I'll get around to taking their tour. After your first purchase via Square, expect a 20% discount code.

Awesome interior and really great spirits. Especially loved the spice rum for the fall season. Will definitely be back!

Great ambiance and people Worth the trip and the hazelnut coffee is the best Jennifer is a great bartender

This is truly a small batch operation. Brad the owner is doing some nice things with Rum. He even has a corn whiskey that I really enjoyed. Jen pours the tastings from behind the bar. You must stop by and see what your missing. I believe you can get a tour on most weekends.

Worth visiting. Tasting is very fun Jennifer was very pleasant and helpful. Great experience

This place is beautiful! Drinks are great! I recommend the toasted hazelnut and coffee rum!

A Hidden gem. i ended up here on a rainy Sat afternoon with friends. The owners were very friendly and welcoming.

I rarely post reviews, especially negative ones. I always try to resolve issues privately. I tried to resolve, but could not. So, in this case I felt the need to share. I bought a founder's membership in 2015 that included a complimentary bottle once they started production. I actually bought two memberships, one for me and one for a friend. The first release was rum. Neither one of us like rum, so we asked when bourbon might be available. We were told it would be a couple of years at least. We asked if we could wait for the bourbon to get our bottle. We were told we could We checked back over the years and waited patiently for the bourbon release. When I saw the post about the release I was so excited. I messaged and asked if they could set one aside but was told that they would not honor this because the bourbon is too expensive to produce. Not once was I ever told that the bourbon was excluded from the founders club promotion. Nothing in the original founders club offer mentioned this. I am very, very disappointed. Whomever I was messaging with refused to call me to discuss and told me I could stop by if I wanted to. I feel cheated and taken advantage of. I was offered 50% off, but that is not the point.

What a local distillery should be like. Friendly ownership and people. This is a hidden gem that you don't know about until you stumble upon it. I went to a Halloween event that they were apart of. Had some samples and talked with the owners. I am more of a beer person but the samples had a great flavor. I will defiantly go back for a tour.

Had a wonderful complimentary tour and tasting. When I went they also had a flight of hot drinks which were so delicious. It's easy to see the passion that goes into this product. Highly recommend visiting!

Let me start by saying this is by far the best Distillery I've been to with everything being local down to the sugar. The wife and I went for the first time yesterday Friday March 29th just the two of us and when we arrived Brad greeted us like family and have us a tour and then the tasting. We stayed for about 2 hours and had such an amazing time. We talked about it so much that our friends just had to have us bring them which was today and let me just say things got even better. We did our tasting purchased a few drinks and were able to sit and relax and just enjoy the atmosphere. I purchased 3 more bottles today and already have plans to go back since I missed out on the last bottle of the original white rum. If anyone has been thinking about it please don't hesitate to stop in and enjoy this hidden gem in Columbia that will not disappoint. For two days I have been telling everyone I know you have to give this place a visit Brad and his team really made our weekend and look forward to see what other amazing products he will produce in the future. There is nothing like supporting our fellow Marylanders especially when it's a great product and experience to get behind.

Lost Ark is a true local distillery! All ingredients are sourced from Howard county. The rum is one of the smoothest I have ever had. The tastings are very immersive into their distilling process and bottle prices are very reasonable. I would highly recommend for a great time out!

Super friendly staff, Brad and Jen took the time to answer questions and chat. The Rum and Whiskey are very good. I'm not a rum drinker, I've only had brands like Bacardi, but I could drink Lost Ark straight. They all were smooth and very enjoyable to sip. All of the bottles can stand on their own or would be good in a cocktail. When it came down to purchasing bottles it was very hard to decide what to add to my bar at home because they were all so good.

Distillates stand on their own with out mixers! Let me repeat. Distillates stand on their own with out mixers... when is the last time you heard that from a craft distillery! Great products with a unique flavor. Knowledgeable staff willing to share insight and tips. Overall great experience. Highly recommend.

Lost Ark is a great place to grab a drink and check out how spirits are distilled!! It's in a great location next to Hysteria Brewing Co. too!

Stopped here after a visit to Hysteria Brewery. Enjoyed a few samples of rum courtesy of Andy. Bought a bottle of hazelnut rum, which will be great in coffee! Will be great place to hang when they get their license to serve cocktails.