Our test criteria
What do the test criteria mean in detail?
In 1999 we began to organise the previously "open" tests to improve comparability and recognisability of the colas. Thus we introduced 7 test criteria that are assessed during a test. We pay attention to:
- Sweetness: Must fit, otherwise the cola will be either viscid or watery;
- Acidity: Determines if a cola is refreshing and sparkling because the acidity is the counterpart to sweetness. It must not have its own dominant taste
- Fluidity: Describers how well a colas rolls over your tongue. The cola should neither be too thick and viscid nor should it be thin and speed down the throat (after all you want some time to taste it)
- Cola taste: describes the "core" of the drink, i.e. the kind and (if present) complexity of the cola taste. It is not to be mistaken for the overall taste of the cola which is the result of all the individual taste criteria (sweetness, acidity, cola taste).
- Aftertaste: Is the remainder of the taste. A noticeable aftertaste is usually not desired.
- Coherence: Determines if a colas runs over the tongue in one joint piece or if different components are present at different phases over time.
- Harmony: exists when all components match each other. Nothing should dominate, but a certain complexity is positively recognised.
Special features of colas or other comments are noted under "Other".
The first 70 tests were conducted in an "open" way, i.e. comments without test categories. They are usually incomplete and sometimes refer to previous tests. In the early days that didn't pose a problem - we had literally all colas "on the tongue". Today we can barely remember having tested some of them before ...