Mate drinks wine, about to deal with mouthful? (qa)

I believe the answer is:

masticate

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'deal with mouthful? qa' is the definition.
I can't tell whether this definition defines the answer.

'mate drinks wine about' is the wordplay.
'drinks' indicates putting letters inside.
'wine' becomes 'asti' (Italian wine).
'about' becomes 'c' (circa).
'asti'+'c'='astic'
'mate' placed around 'astic' is 'MASTICATE'.

'to' acts as a link.

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for masticate that I've seen before include "champ" , "Chew food" , "Torpor" , "Chomp" , "Process food" .)

I've seen this clue in The Sun.

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