1 Purpose
This document establishes normative requirements for Taste Assessment and Star Decision within the controlled Good Taste Awards standards system.
2 Scope
This document applies to the requirements, decisions, records, controls, and outputs expressly identified under Taste Assessment and Star Decision. Award scope and exclusions are controlled by GTA-STD-100; this document shall not create an additional award dimension. Operational prerequisites identified here affect assessment validity and never constitute product certification.
3 Authority and interpretation
The Method Authority owns GTA-STD-200; the Standards Authority approves it. Normative verbs, controlled terms, stable requirement identities, policy constants, and generated representations shall be interpreted under GTA-GOV-002, GTA-GOV-005, and the controlled registers.
3.1 Registered relationships
| Relationship | Direction | Related document |
|---|---|---|
implemented_by | inbound | GTA-METHOD-001 |
implements | inbound | GTA-SCH-201 |
implements | inbound | GTA-SCH-202 |
implements | inbound | GTA-OPS-107 |
implements | inbound | GTA-OPS-108 |
governed_by | outbound | GTA-GOV-001 |
drafted_under | outbound | GTA-GOV-002 |
4 Requirements
GTA-STD-200-R001 — Overall Liking construct
The Method Authority shall use the assessor's integrated hedonic response as the sole primary candidate input.
GTA-STD-200-R002 — Controlled liking scale
The Method Authority shall capture one permitted liking value using the controlled scale anchors.
GTA-STD-200-R003 — Independent response
The Method Authority shall complete and lock each response before any panel discussion or aggregate disclosure.
GTA-STD-200-R004 — Explanatory sensory evidence
The Method Authority shall elicit aroma, flavour, texture, balance, integration, finish, strengths, limitations, and suspected defects only after Overall Liking is locked and without numeric weighting.
GTA-STD-200-R005 — Initial decision
The Method Authority shall apply the initial candidate and progression rules at the controlled initial decision point.
GTA-STD-200-R006 — First progressed decision
The Method Authority shall apply the first progressed candidate, continuation, and boundary rules at the controlled decision point.
GTA-STD-200-R007 — Higher-star continuation
The Method Authority shall apply the separate high-evidence continuation rule before assigning the next screening stage.
GTA-STD-200-R008 — Extended decision
The Method Authority shall apply the extended candidate and higher-star entry rules at the controlled decision point.
GTA-STD-200-R009 — Final decision
The Method Authority shall apply the final higher-star rule at the controlled final decision point.
GTA-STD-200-R010 — Professional confirmation
The Method Authority shall confirm the calculated candidate within defined integrity and evidence grounds and prohibit preference-based override or promotion.
GTA-STD-200-R011 — Confirmed-level preservation
The Method Authority shall preserve the confirmed lower star when a progressed product does not meet a higher rule.
GTA-STD-200-R012 — Response validity
The Method Authority shall exclude a response only for a defined process-based reason and retain the original record.
GTA-STD-200-R013 — Result authorization
The Method Authority shall require reproducible calculation, complete composition, confirmation, incident closure, and comment evidence.
5 Assessment sequence
- Confirm product identity separation, approved preparation, target population, assessor eligibility, panel composition, and session allocation.
- Present the product under its blind code and controlled order.
- Capture and lock one Overall Liking value or an authorized inability state before presenting explanatory fields.
- Capture explanatory observations independently and lock the complete response before discussion or aggregate disclosure.
- Resolve inability, conflict, service, and validity states without inventing or altering a liking value.
- Assemble the exact valid cumulative response set and verify its composition.
- Calculate the candidate and permitted progression through the decision engine.
- Conduct bounded professional confirmation and record minority evidence.
- Authorize the preserved level, progression state, result, comment route, and publication eligibility.
6 Evidence separation
| Evidence | Permitted use | Prohibited use |
|---|---|---|
| Overall Liking | sole input to candidate calculation | alteration after discussion or weighting by status |
| Descriptive observations | explanation, comment support, defect investigation, and confirmation evidence | independent numeric score or compensating weight |
| Panel discussion | clarify observations and build an evidence-based comment | negotiate or normalize locked liking values |
| Professional confirmation | confirm integrity and product-specific evidence within authority | replace consumer-side evidence or promote a candidate |
| Open public feedback | supplementary public interpretation | star calculation, progression, confirmation, or review |
An assessor response is invalid only for a defined identity, eligibility, completion, independence, service, or integrity reason. Disagreement with other assessors is not an invalidity ground.
7 Conformity and records
Conformity with Taste Assessment and Star Decision requires evidence comprising the source evidence, controlled decision, accountable role, and independent or automated verification. The record for each applicable GTA-STD-200 requirement shall permit reconstruction without relying on an unrecorded explanation.
Evidence created under GTA-STD-200 shall use stable identifiers, immutable event sequence numbers, and machine event timestamps. A correction shall be append-only. A nonconformity shall place the affected object in a non-releasable state until its consequence and authorized disposition are recorded. Role combination remains subject to the mandatory separation rules.