taster

plural tasters

1. An object in which, or by which, food or drink is tasted, such as a small cup or spoon.

   A flight of tasters was served to the people who would vote on the next soda flavor to be released.

2. Someone who tastes something; especially, either (1) to check its quality (in food science, winemaking, etc.) or (2) as a security measure to prevent assassination of a protectee.

   Being a cook for protectees also entails being a taster for them.

   3 more examples

   Big companies such as P&G or Kraft Heinz employ or contract with professional tasters who help with product development.

   Thy tutor be thy taster, ere thou eat

   1693, Decimus Junius Juvenalis, John Dryden, transl., “[The Satires of Decimus Junius Juvenalis.] The Sixth Satyr”, in The Satires of Decimus Junius Juvenalis. Translated into English Verse. […] Together with the Satires of Aulus Persius Flaccus. […], London: […] Jacob Tonson […], →OCLC

   Several tasters noted the “overly sweet” coconut aroma, carrying through to a “too sweet” flavour and “too chewy” mouthfeel. One taster said that masticating the biscuit felt like “an intense workout”.

   2023 April 22, Yvonne C. Lam, “Supermarket Anzac biscuit taste test: from ‘beautiful’ to ‘an intense workout’”, in The Guardian, →ISSN, archived from the original on 03 Aug 2023

   Synonyms: degustator

3. biologyA kind of zooid situated on the polyp-stem of certain Siphonophorae, resembling the feeding zooids, but destitute of mouths.
4. A sample of something bigger or grander intended for future use.

   The Kraft Heinz exhibit at the trade fair was a taster of new snack products set to hit the market soon.

   1 more example

   The Samsung exhibit at the trade fair was a taster of new consumer electronic products set to hit the market soon.

5. A person who is, by genetic makeup, able to taste phenylthiocarbamide.

   Antonyms: nontaster

6. historicalA unit of volume equivalent to a Roman cyathus.