Research at Baton Rouge General Helps Physician Launch Wine Tasting Kit

BATON ROUGE, La. – After years of taste receptor research at Baton Rouge General, Dr. Henry Barham today announced the launch of VinoTastr, a discovery kit that helps people choose wines based on personal taste sensitivities.

“Wine tasting notes can only tell you what a wine tastes like according to the writer of the note; they can't tell you if the wine will suit you,” said Dr. Barham, VinoTastr’s co-founder and Chief Science Officer. “VinoTastr gives you the confidence to explore wines best suited to your palate.”

Within minutes of testing, VinoTastr identifies one of five unique profiles -- Sweet Avenger, Savory Crusader, Body Advocate, Balance Ambassador, or Tannin Champion.

Backed by a decade of Dr. Barham’s research, VinoTastr’s at-home discovery kit measures the current expression of individual taste receptors using four specific taste testing strips and a web-based scoring algorithm that reveals individual taste sensitivities to bitterness, sweetness, flavor, and body. An individual’s sensitivities to bitterness, sweetness, flavor, and body closely align with known wine characteristics such as tannins, astringency, residual sugar, and alcohol levels. VinoTastr then recommends wines that account for these taste sensitivities and known wine characteristics.

“People new to wine are often intimidated by an abundance of choices when selecting wines or turned off by recommendations from other,” said Eddie Pitre, VinoTastr Chief Research Officer. “For many, it’s a light-bulb moment when they learn what wines will best suit their palate.”

In addition to the test results, VinoTastr supports a community of wine lovers with frequently updated wine recommendations for each profile.

Dr. Barham’s research at the height of COVID-19 was published in the Journal of the American Medical Association and made national headlines. He is a rhinologist at Sinus and Nasal Specialists of Louisiana, practicing at Baton Rouge General’s Bluebonnet hospital.

For more information, visit vinotastr.com.

About Baton Rouge General Medical Center
Baton Rouge General Medical Center is the area’s first community hospital with over 600 licensed beds between three campuses. Baton Rouge General opened its doors in 1900, and has provided the Greater Baton Rouge community with high-quality healthcare for generations. An accredited teaching hospital since 1991, Baton Rouge General is affiliated with several medical school programs, and offers other medical education programs, including a School of Nursing, School of Radiologic Technology, Family Medicine Residency Program, Internal Medicine Residency Program, and Sports Medicine Fellowship Program. For more information, visit BRGeneral.org, find us on Facebook at Facebook.com/BatonRougeGeneral and follow us on Twitter @BRGeneral and Instagram @batonrougegeneral.

About VinoTastr

VinoTastr, the world's first wine taste technology company, is headquartered in The Woodlands, Texas. VinoTastr technology is based on medical research and studies led and published by Dr. Henry Barham in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), National Geographic, and various other publications on specific cell surface receptors responsible for certain taste qualities.

VinoTastr offers customized sales integration solutions for wineries, tasting rooms, retailers, and distributors.

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