WSET Advanced wine exam tips

Last Saturday I took my WSET Advanced exam. Phew! It was pretty intense and I was completely exhausted afterwards, I didn't realise how stressed I had been.

The exam is 50 multiple choice questions, a short answer paper, and a blind tasting of two wines.

You could say it was easier than I was expecting it to be, because I thought there would be more drill down in each of the regions for the short answer questions. But I think that made it harder, because I had spent so much time learning the regions, geology and geography, and not enough time on wine service!

Since the exam I have been dreaming about taking it again but as is the way with dreams in much different circumstance - in a hall with a hundred other students, one a cliff as a one-on-one interview... but soon my brain will realise its over. I have another five weeks to wait for the results.

There were some very tough questions, so here are my top tips:

1. For each region don't forget to learn the sweet and fortified wines as well as the main red and white wines made in that region. 
2. Keep studying all the way up to the exam, you never know what final piece of information you might learn.
3. Read the question twice (a tip given to me before going in), because although they ask you about Chenin Blanc, they are asking you a particular question about it, so focus on the actual question.
4. If English is your first language, don't worry too much about your grammar, they are marking your knowledge, although full sentences is preferred.
5. Write SOMETHING for every short answer question, you will get marks even by saying its a white or red wine for example. You do know something, so write something!
6. For the blind tasting, get on with it. Time ran out for me, I think I spent too much time writing elaborate sentences. Although it might impress the examiner, you don't extra marks for that and there's not much room on the paper anyway. I'd recommend doing timed practice tests at home.
7. Practice short answer questions by picking a region and thinking about which four wines you can talk about in that region.
8. Spend time making sure you know each wine-making method (red, white, rose, sparkling, sweet, fortified) and the variations of each.
9. Remember to read about wine-service and social responsibility chapters, they may seem like common sense, but you may need to answer short answer questions on these.
10. Draw your own maps if you have a visual memory. I found these very useful to consolidate knowledge on the varieties, geography, geology and climate.

The way I answered the exam is to answer the short answer questions that you know, make a note of the ones you don't know, then answer the multiple response questions you know, marking those you don't know. Then go back to the short answer, then go back to multiple choice. The reason I felt this was a good way is because you get some hard questions out the way, you will have read all the short-answer questions so when you go through the multiple choice it might trigger a memory that helps with the ones you thought you don't know. I'd leave the multiple choice you don't know to the end, because these will be down to (educated) chance if you get them right and if you run out of time are the least likely to have got you extra marks.

One things I wasn't sure about was for the blind tasting, identifying the wine, do I go with my heart (what I think it is) or my head (what my tasting notes say)? I went with my heart and I'm pretty sure I got the red wrong!

I'm happy its over and waiting in anticipation to get my results. If you have any other questions about the WSET Advanced exam, or want to share your experience, please do comment on this post.

The Sampler Blind Tasting

I was disappointed with the blind tasting at The Sampler in South Kensington London last week. It was a divine idea, and I was really looking forward to testing myself in the run up to my WSET Advanced exam.

Find out about other tastings at The Sampler here

It was very good value for the wines they had chosen, and organisation of the tasting was fantastic, but the execution left a lot to be desired. I don't blame The Sampler per se, I blame the knob know-all who turned up and ruined the evening for the rest of us. Unfortunately the lady who was running it didn't have enough gravitas to put him in his place and coach the rest of us back out of our shells.

Sitting down at three tables, a bit too spaciously to talk to the others around our table, we were given two glasses of sparkling wine to start with, a piece of paper to write our notes, and a tasting guide. Great, I'll start my process of elimination to figure out what I've got...
1. Many fast small bubbles, light gold colour, pronounced aroma with biscuit flavour, high acidity, so traditional method...
2. Slow small few bubbles, light lemon colour, low intensity aroma, citrus fruits, so tank method...

I hadn't got to whether I thought it was Cremant or Champagne, Prosecco or a NZ sparkling, when the lady asked us: "So does anyone have anything to say about these two wines looking at the tasting notes, perhaps a comment on how they think it was made?" Immediately followed by the gentleman to my left shouting "On the left is La Chapelle and the right is that Spanish sparkling you have". The lady tried to lead him away into talking more about how he got to those answers and what that meant about how the wines were made, but he only cared if he got it right, so she replied politely "no, and no". I thought that might shut him up, but unfortunately not.

The next three we were told are the same location, same year, but different quality. I got to as much as it might be a pinot noir, but a cold one, was it Burgundy or Oregon, and the same gentleman (perhaps I shall stop calling him a "gentleman") yelled "It's Gevrey-Chambertin isn't it? 2011 isn't it?" And indeed it was. *Sigh*

I think this left the rest of us unwilling to participate in this game. I think even the lady hosting the tasting couldn't be bothered any more. I had only got to smelling the next two wines (both of which smelled delicious) which differed by age as the clue, when we were told it was Rioja Paternina Conde de los Andes Gran Reserva 1994 vs 2001. To be honest, if we're going to compare ages of two wines, I think one of them should be recent - you couldn't distinguish the colour between these wines because they were both old.

The final pair I immediately said to my friend "Bordeaux" then we both drank it. No tasting, no comparing notes, no discussing the merits of different producers (the comparative measure between the two), no calculating left- or right-bank, Medoc vs Pauillac. All excitement in the exercise was lost. no-one cared, except the knob to my left. A women on my table was still very enthusiastic, especially once she saw what the prices of the wines had been (average of £37, the cheapest being the Prosecco at £11 and the most expensive the Leoville Barton at £80).

I vowed not to return to a Sampler tasting, because I was worried if I went back and encountered this type of experience again it would sadden me. It's not fair on people who want to have fun with wine, to enjoy wine, to learn about how method, quality, age, and producers affect the taste of the wine. The Sampler is encouraging for all levels of wine experience, but if they can't control the few to protect the masses, I'd rather go somewhere else. Having said that, I can't stay away - they have a tasting coming up which will showcase The Scholium Project, a very innovative concept for the wine world, and I must go. Maybe I'll see you there, but please don't be a knob.

Read about the Scholium project here

Chateau Poujeaux Moulis en Medoc 2008

I tasted this wine and got as close as guessing it as close as Medoc. Amazing! But what's more amazing is the variety of aromas and flavours, check it out...

Appearance: clear, deep garnet with tawny rim indicating age, thick legs indicating high alcohol or sweetness.

Nose: clean, med+ intensity, developing.

Aromas: blackcurrant, blueberry, black cherry, baked plum, vanilla, rum and raisin ice cream, clove, forest floor. Distinctive sherry aroma indicating oxidation.

Palate: quite watery on front of mouth indicating age, dry, medium acidity, high tannin, med+ alcohol, med+ body, med- intensity, med length.

Flavours: plum, blackcurrant, black cherry, jam, raisin, black olive, liquorice, black pepper, charred wood, resin, hot Tarmac.

Quality: very good, drink now not for further ageing because it doesn't have enough fruit to develop further, high priced.

Identity: Bordeaux, left bank, Medoc, containing Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and a tiny bit of Petit Verdot. At least 3yrs old.

BOOM!! I got it so right. Only thing I could have got more right bar the Chateau which I could not have guessed (!) was that it is actually 6yrs old.

I am awesome!

How is Sangiovese different from Pinot Noir?

So, in one of my blind tastings as practice for my WSET Advanced I was told a wine I was tasting was not a pinot noir, but I found out it was a Burgundy (an easy mistake to make - check my previous post on how to tell what grapes are in French wine http://princessandthepinot.blogspot.co.uk/2014/03/how-can-you-tell-which-grapes-are-in.html

One of my guesses was a Sangiovese, so I had to learn what makes Pinot Noir different from Sangiovese. Here are my notes:
Appearance: Both are ruby, but sangiovese is medium intensity, PN is light
Nose: Both med+ (the ones I tasted anyway)
Aromas: Both Cherry and plum, S=blackcurrant, PN=strawberry
Mouth: Both dry, low acidity, low body, but WOW S=high tannin, PN=low tannin BOOM!
Flavours: Both strawberry, cherry, plum
OK, tannin is the differentiater, take note all you WSETers.

Next... how is Nebbiolo different?

How can you tell which grapes are in French wines?

So I am given a glass of a light red wine, and before tasting "It's pinot noir!" I exclaim. "No, it isn't" my friend replies, with the knowledge of having chosen it for me to blind taste as practice for my WSET Advanced course.

"Oh, well what is it..." I ponder. Right, lets do this properly.
Appearance: light intensity, ruby, clear, med legs.
Nose: Clean, med+ intensity, developed.
Aromas: raspberry, cherry, plum, strawberry, rosehip, strawberry sweets, cherry jolly rancher.
Mouth: low intensity, dry, low acidity, low tannin, light body, medium alcohol
Flavours: strawberry, cherry, plum.
Quality: short length, acceptable quality, drink now not for ageing, inexpensive.

OK, so its not pinot noir... grenache? a rubbish pinotage? sangiovese? none of them make sense.

What is it? Roncier Burgundy 12.5% Vin de France. Ah! An understandable mistake - my friend doesn't realise that Burgundy is pinot noir, "it doesn't say it on the label". One of the "tricks" about French wine is that they expect you to know whats in the bottle from the minimal labelling terms they use. This is a common mistake.

As a basic rule of thumb:
Burgundy red = pinot noir
Burgundy white = chardonnay
Chablis = chardonnay
Beaujolais = gamay
Rhone red = syrah (aka Shiraz)
Bordeaux red = cabernet sauvignon and merlot
Loire white = chenin blanc or sauvignon blanc

Hope that helps!
Let me know if you need to know others and I'll put together a more comprehensive list.

Practice for WSET 3 - blind tasting

Ok it's a new week and I have another wine to try blind...

Appearance: clear, medium intensity, lemon yellow, low alcohol/sugar.

Nose: clean, pronounced, developing.

Aromas: green apple, gooseberry, grapefruit, pineapple.

At this point I thought Sauvignon Blanc, so looked for green tinge and passion fruit and lime but couldn't find it...

Palate: dry, med+ acidity, med- alcohol, light body, med+ intensity, refreshing, delicate, med+ finish.

Flavour: lemon juice, grapefruit flesh, lemon peel, gooseberry, white pepper.

Quality: good, drink now not for ageing, mid-priced.

Identity: Italian? Normally they're light intensity but maybe it's Soave, I read that has a bit more to it, but I haven't tried that in a while so couldn't really say... Eden valley Riesling? That's quite fresh right? But I'm coming back to France... It's not Sav Blanc, could it be cheap Chablis?

No. Dammit. It's Pouilly Fume!! Argh!! I need to learn about Pouilly Fume, what makes it different from other Sav Blanc and why did I dismiss it? Is there a trick/ knack/ cheat sheet? 

Any tips welcome!

WSET Advanced practice #2

OK, so one under my belt, lets see how I get on with a red:

Medium+ intensity, ruby,clear appearance, high viscosity (means either high sugar or high alcohol).
On the nose: blackcurrant, blackberries, reducrrants, sweet spice: clove, black pepper, chocolate, cedar, eucalyptus.
Taste: med+ acidity, high alcohol, medium+ body, pronounced, med- tannin.
Blackcurrants, raspberry, clove, chocolate,blackberry, and i'm sticking my neck out and saying eucalyptus because i get a minty zing.
Quality: Good,  Mid price, ready to drink now.
Ahem, I would love to say Australian Shiraz, but its not... what is it? No,seriously what is it? The acidity is too high for Merlot, not enough tanning for Cab Sav, and its not Pinot Noir... Hey! Pinochet! I mean pinotage, sorry,that's what we call it.

And what is it?
Wow.ee.
Doolhof Pinotage 2010 (dammit I forgot to guess vintage again!),Wellington, South Africa. I need to learn more about Wellington. £15, 2010, and a high 15%. Yep, a lot of alcohol. And its yummy. Buy it,drink it. Probably the best Pinotage I've had yet, although I do love Goats do Roam.

Tasting practice for WSET Advanced #1

I have just started my WSET Advanced and I'm super excited!! There is a lot more work with this level than the Intermediate, and rightly so, but after Class 1 it is a little daunting. The tasting is more sophisticated and the book twice as thick, I need to get studying... and that means drinking, ahem, I mean tasting wines too.

Badger is my initial support group (until I find others), and he has set me the task of tasting one white and one red per week without knowing what it is, so I can practice. This is what I tasted today:

Medium intensity, lemon yellow, clear  appearance.
Nose: Clean, lemon rind, yellow apples, honey, blossom, sand, I'm getting something oakey but can't put my finger on it... maybe its not oak, maybe its tropical fruits instead, yes mango and passion fruit.
Mouth: medium- acidity, medium+ body, dry, medium+ alcohol, pronounced, but short length.
I'm getting golden delicious apples, mango, papaya, passion fruit,almond  skin, apple juice from concentrate, honeycomb.
Quality: Acceptable, mid-low price (I haven't yet learned the correct terminology and I'm doing this blind) so I'd guess £8-11, definitely Chardonnay (I got that from the first sniff), from Chile... wait, no Central Valley California.

Right, what is it?
Hahn winery, Chardonnay from Monterey 2012, 14.5% and £14.

Blimey! Not bad for a first go, I'm not as rusty as I thought. Now, i would tell you what I got wrong or what I missed, but I need to move on to the red. Good game, good game.

Italian wines

Before I started my WSET (Wine & Spirits Education Trust) course, I "didn't like" Italian wines. That is to say I knew very little about them other than Pinot Grigio which I find tasteless, Chianti which I find a little bitter, and Valpolicella which is sour. Now I love them, purely because I know what I'm buying. There are lots of varietals and regions to learn, probably why we don't know much, and they're wrongly seen as "less good" than French wines, which often means you get better value for money. Here are a few you should try...

Hannibal Lecter infamously drank Chianti with liver and fava beans - not a bad choice as it happens! Chianti is made from the Sangiovese grape, which is high in body, acidity and tannin, has plum, earth, tomato and tea flavours. I would suggest this if you like Cabernet Sauvignon and  Bordeaux wines. I'm not saying they taste the same, but should appeal to a similar palate.

If you like Pinot Noir, may I suggest you try the Nebbiolo grape, either in the form of Barolo or Barbaresco wines. Nebbiolo has high body, acidity and tannin, and has red fruit, floral and earthy flavours that might be enjoyed by a Pinot-phile (I've just re-read this and noticed how dreadful that sounds!!). Be aware though, a Barolo can be quite full-on, a "meal wine", and is best enjoyed with (or instead of!) food .

If you love Shiraz, particularly Australian Shiraz, then I would strongly suggest you try Primitivo or Montepulciano d'Abruzzo. Both are rich in black fruits, the former with jammy notes and the latter with black pepper and raisin. Yum! (NB. Primitivo is the same family as Zinfandel, but don't let that put you off!)

For white wines, don't bother with bland Pinot Grigio or Soave, instead try something more unusual with a Castelli di Jesi (Verdicchio grape - lemon, fennel, bitter almond) or a Gavi (Cortese grape - citrus, candied fruit). Oh and one thing to remember,  don't buy Trebbiano - this is a mass-produced grape that is used for making cheap blends! The way I remember this is its the white grape with two Bs, for Bad Blends.

Look for DOC or DOCG on the label, this means it comes from a quality wine-producing area.

Quick note on Italian sparkling wines: Prosecco is a good alternative to Champagne, although will have less complex flavours, because it is made using the Tank method. "Spumante" means its fully sparkling and "Frizzante" means its lightly sparkling. The best Prosecco is, apparently, Conegliano-Valdobbiadene DOCG (I have yet to try this).

Challenger wine #9

Arca Nova Colheita 2011 Vinho Verde 11%

Vinho Verde was a wine that lost me a mark on my WSET exam, as I thought it was a grape varietal from Portugal, but it is a wine region in Portugal. So I had to try it.

Lovely! All is forgiven. It's a refreshing wine with a spritz. It's like a sav blanc spritzer but hasn't lost its flavour from watering it down. It's light and refreshing and finished with a nutty flavour as it passes over your bitter taste buds. I'm very impressed! It's not harsh or acidic even though it is awash with citrus and gooseberry flavour. From a wine called "verde", I was expecting young and harsh, but its not, not at all, at least not this Arca Nova.

I'm imagining myself sitting next to a swimming pool in the 1940s, Great Gatsby style.

We scored this a 3 on likeability and 3 for quality = 6/10, a surprisingly decent score.

Welcome to Princess and the Pinot!

I am hoping to use this blog to help you explore wine in such a way that you can try some very tasty, some good quality wines, but without having to spend a fortune, or kiss too many frogs before finding your prince.

I will be blogging my tasting notes, tips for choosing wine, and thoughts and comments as I continue my wine exploration. I hope you will join me on the journey.

I have passed WSET Level 2 with Distinction, so I know a little about what I am talking about, although the way I taste wines is somewhat different to the standard tasting notes. I hope you enjoy reading the blog and if you have any questions, comments, or recommendations, please post away!