My write-up on SanTasti will likely come off sounding like a sales pitch but I assure you, I’m in no way getting kick-backs or am related to the founders in any way. The reason for my excitement is because I’ve tried the product and it works. It also solves a very real problem I’ve have while wine tasting but could never adequately solve.
Quite simply, SanTasti is the world’s first palate cleansing beverage. Imagine it as a sparkling water but with a little extra magic that rids your palate of unwatered sugars, tannins or flavors. Its made up of carbonated water, sugar, pectin, citric acid and cellulose gum. What’s great is that it tastes like nothing. Thats actually a REALLY good thing. It doesn’t leave any flavor or residue behind. It simply cleans your palate leaving it refreshed and renewed.
Its application is simple. After sampling a wine, sip and swish SanTasti around your mouth to cleanse the palate so your NEXT wine sample will be fresh. Of course, SanTasti could be explained in a myriad of food or other beverage examples but we’re wine folks and the part that makes the most sense to us is palate fatigue. It’s best proven example is tasting a big red wine, sipping SanTasti, then tasting a delicate white wine. I’m partial to big, jammy red wines but tasting those all day long doesn’t allow any expressive white wines to show their true profile since the tannins and compounds left in my mouth doesn’t let delicate whites or Pinot Noirs stand next to these bigger wines.
I’m also a fan of this product for the winemaker in me. Sampling batch after batch, or barrel after barrel takes it’s toll on my palate but this product allows me to see the subtle nuances from batch to batch. I can imagine the professional winemakers could really use this since they’re tasting dozens in a single day!
The story of SanTasti is as one of those “feel good” stories that makes you want to see them succeed. Founders Andrew Macaluso and Nicole Chamberlain were students at Cal Poly studying viticulture and enology together. This product was the result of their “senior project” after much studying and realizing there was a great need for something like this. After much praise and encouragement, they went into competitions with it and won. The money they acquired went straight into funding the first production of this product and starting their own business. Again, using the money from their winnings, they packed up their van with their first “vintage” and headed to Northern California wine country to sell 30 wineries in 30 days which they did with ease.
The possibilities for this product are really endless. I’m sure you’re going to see it more and more popping up on the judge’s tables at wine competitions, wineries will be offering it between tastings, restaurants will offer it between courses and even Joe Consumer can appreciate its use when touring wine country on the weekends or even at home.Like a gun in it’s holster, I’m going to arm myself with a bottle each time I head to wine country tasting along the back roads.
For more information on SanTasti and to purchase their products, please visit www.santasti.com. I’m sure they would love to hear from you too.
