Nicole Chamberlain wants you to be p.c. But your rash political commentary is the least of her worries, because in the world of SanTasti, p.c. means palate-cleansed. Chamberlain and her partner Andrew Macaluso are diving into wine markets nose-first, to prove that their product has a place in the industry, and making us wonder if Pellegrino is, perhaps, so last year.

In the future of fine dining, when you order a bottle of sparkling, intending to make the most out of your five star experience, you just might find, and be giddy to see, a bottle of SanTasti dropped onto your table. It’s water. But it’s got some bubbles, so it’s a sparkling water. Yet it’s a palate cleanser. So, actually, scratch that. SanTasti is a little bit of everything, and that multidimensionism probably warrants its own category.

SanTasti is a palate-cleansing beverage that’s only been around a short while—it just had its first birthday. In a market where age usually equates greatness, Santasti is proving itself as a necessity in the wine tasting business, and breaking into other tasting businesses as well—olive oil, chocolate—anything else food gurus find themselves “tasting.”

Chamberlain and Macaluso got the idea for SanTasti while they were students at California Polytechnic State University. “We were studying for finals,” Chamberlain says. “Andrew was sitting at his desk, and he looked up and said, ‘What if there was a beverage that could clean your palate?’ And I said, ‘Yea, that would be cool.’ We wrote it down in our idea book, left it alone for a few months, and came back to it later,” she remembers. After finals were over, of course.

Nine months from idea to finish, the duo worked fast, Chamberlain says. Winning CalPoly’s Innovation Quest in June 2008 helped fund their project. “Our first production run was the day before [Macaluso] turned 23,” Chamberlain says. “It was a good birthday present.”

More than a year later, SanTasti now comes in three flavors: Peppermint, Cinnamint, and the Classic. The flavored versions were originally intended for smokers or coffee drinkers. “Instead of chewing a stick of gum, you’re drinking water that gets rid of the crappy taste and freshens your breath at the same time,” Chamberlain says.

But she insists that the company’s main focus is the Classic, the original flavor of SanTasti. To dispute allegations that it’s no different from gargling with a plain ol’ bottle of Perrier in between gulps of merlot, Chamberlain breaks down the science behind the product. “Ours is half the carbonation, so it’s not going to shock the palate as much. The whole formulation is that it actually removes the tannins,” she says. “It also has citric acid to stimulate saliva flow to wash away flavors. We balance it with a tiny bit of sugar, so it’s not just an acid bomb in your mouth.”

In other words, this palate-cleansing beverage doesn’t intend to strip away a layer of your tongue and bring your taste buds back to ground zero. Think of it more as a balancer, less as a cleanser. As for now, Chamberlain and Macaluso are working on creating a 750 ml bottle, which would be more appropriate for restaurants and tasting rooms, as well as experimenting with new flavors of SanTasti. Keep and eye out for the duo, whose Einstein turned winestein career epiphany has sent them in the right direction to make an impact on the wine tasting industry. Lucky for us, they’re just getting started.

The promise of good booze and food brought local industry insiders together for a luncheon in the Liberty Hotel Ballroom on June 11, hosted by the Madeira Institute of Wine, Embroidery and Handicrafts. Guests sampled ten types of Madeira before enjoying a meal of pairings, with traditional Portuguese foods. Bottled on the island of Madeira, off the coast of Portugal, grapes are harvested between mid-August and mid-October and fortified into what most Americans equate to something similar to a Sherry. Sure, they’re both considered wines to sip instead of guzzle, and the higher price point makes them less accessible, but Madeira and Sherry are as different as they are similar. Madeira’s guidelines are strict and only a handful of wineries produce the amber-colored goodness, all located on the small island.

The afternoon was spent learning to distinguish the different characteristics between a Sercial (dry), Verdelho (medium dry), Boal (medium sweet) and Malvasia (sweet), and trying each. Colheitas, aged in oak barrels for a minimum of five years, were lighter and fruiter than their much older Vintage counterparts. In order for Madeira to become a Vintage, it must marinate in the wood for at least twenty, resulting in a dry, sweet acidity that pairs perfectly with chocolate. By the end of the afternoon, everyone learned Madeira’s uses outside of sipping and sauces.

Check out pics from the afternoon below:

Crash Course Wine Seminars are back after the Riot! and they’re better than ever. It’s summertime in Boston and we have a whole new slew of courses coming up designed to turn you and your friends into wine badasses.

As usual, our goal is to empower you, the drinker, with more knowledge about wine by way of expert education and tasty sips. We are working with Boston’s top names in wine to bring and fun, informative and most importantly, completely unpretentious wine class. All Crash Courses are $10 a person, and include 4-6 different wines to taste and a whole lot of expert knowledge.

Get Your Learn On

Jeff Golden, Wine Buyer and all around rockstar at Downtown Wine & Spirits, along with experienced Second Glass Staffers, will bust knowledge and pour glasses of great vino.

Where: Downtown Wine & Spirits [225 Elm St, Somerville, MA]

When: Wednesday, July 8th from 7-8pm

Cost: $10

Located on the Eastern border of France, the Alsace region is Germany’s French mistress. Between the 19th and 20th centuries, it changed hands between the two countries 75 times– phew! We’re pretty sure it’s through its identity crisis, but the wines of Alsace show a clear loyalty to both countries. With the crisp feel of classic French whites, and the sweetness of German rieslings, these wines represent great aspects of both countries Alsace has called home. Hop across the border and back, in tasting gems from this region and the countries it sleeps between!