The raspberry aroma after the pour is true-to-the-source, ripe and fresh; following aeration the aroma turns more preserves-like than fresh-picked fruit-like. Palate entry is sweet, yet tart and pleasantly fruity; by midpalate the flavor profile turns savory, fruity and decidedly sweet/tart. Concludes elegantly and ripe. Another how-to lesson on rum flavoring by the wizards at Cruzan. There have been a lot of changes at Cruzan since I firsted visited this distillery in 1993 but Cruzan rums are still the Virgin Island standard by which all other rums are measured. West of the middle of the island, the Cruzan distillery is only a few minutes walk south from Centerline Road on Highway 64. As you approach the distillery the aroma of fermenting molasses mixed with the scent of flowers and greets you.\nThe Cruzan distillery has gone through several owners in the last century and has operated continuously except for the years of US prohibition (1920 -1933). In the spring of 1994, the Cruzan Rum Distillery Company was acquired by Todhunter International. President Donald Nelthropp Sr. and the original staff continue to manage the distillery. Even though this is one of the largest production distilleries in the Eastern Caribbean, the feeling of a family operation permeates the atmosphere here.