WSET Level 2 Class: Week 2 Thoughts

Hooray, I’ve done it! I’ve completed my Wine & Spirit Education Trust Level 2 class and exam. Now comes the long wait for the test results–and hopefully, a nifty digital certificate and bragging rights.

Last week I posted some notes about WSET Level 2, including how I decided to take this class and why it made me nervous. This week, I thought I’d look back on some of my favorite parts of the class and share some tips for getting the most out of an in-person intensive course like WSET.

The Tastings

First, the wines. We tasted a lot of wines in class–at least 40 over the 4 class meetings, according to my notes. (Of course, the tastings were my favorite part!) The wines represented a huge array of different styles and regions–from mass-market Merlot to fine Champagne, from bone-dry Barolo to nectar-like Sauternes.

If you’re like most wine drinkers, you have a few styles and price points that you like and you don’t venture away from those very often. Formal study can nudge you outside of your comfort zone. It really makes you appreciate the vast diversity of wine styles from around the world. As a (mostly) red wine person, I tasted several delicious white wines in this class that I might not have chosen on my own–including a Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc and an Alsace Gewürztraminer.

In terms of exam prep, there is a huge amount of educational value in tasting the wines with the textbook open. I found I was struggling to retain facts about certain wines that I’m not very experienced with, or that aren’t commercially important in my area. (For example, Soave and Fino Sherry.) Once I tasted them in class, however, their attributes “clicked” in a way that reading alone was never going to accomplish.

Tasting wine systematically is a big deal in WSET. Blind tasting isn’t a component of the Level 2 exam, but most of our class group was planning to move on to WSET Level 3 or other programs that do require blind tasting. I personally don’t have much experience with blind tasting, but it’s something I think I could learn with practice. Side-by-side tastings really do help. If you’re not certain of your ability to distinguish between styles of wine–like Prosecco, Cava, and Champagne, for instance–tasting these wines together highlights their differences and helps to build confidence.

What if you’re doing a self-study or virtual WSET course? Non-classroom students receive recommendations from WSET and/or their instructor for putting together their own tasting kits. You can then buy the wines locally–hopefully in half-bottles, if you’re studying alone!

However, I certainly recommend doing the tastings in a group if you can. Tasting with other people–especially people who know more than you. As I mentioned in my Week 1 write-up, my class group was comprised mostly of experienced wine learners and wine professionals. They had a lot to say about the wines, and I mostly kept quiet so I could listen to their tasting notes and educated questions.

The tastings were led by Dilek Caner, MW, owner of the Blind Bishop. I had heard from other DFW wine people that she’s a great teacher, and she is. I highly recommend signing up for the Dallas class if you’re on the fence about it.

Lecture Component

On each day of class, the tasting session was preceded by a lecture and discussion segment lasting a couple of hours. So we had quite a large deck of PowerPoint slides to cover before the first samples were poured. I’m sure this was by design–even the most focused classroom inevitably gets more raucous after 10 or 11 wines.

The WSET course content has a reputation for being on the dull side, but I found the detailed discussion of each grape and region quite engaging. Anything unclear was illuminated with photos, maps, and diagrams.

Not into memorization? WSET approaches wine from many different angles: Farming, commerce, history, and the tasting experience itself. For wine nerds, it’s the opposite of boring. If you’ve ever gone down a Wikipedia rabbit hole about Port production methods or sparkling wine legislation, then you know what I’m talking about.

We had 4 four-hour class sessions, each with just a 10-minute bathroom break. The wine facts were coming in fast and dense. I followed along in the workbook and scribbled down as many notes as I could. I’m not complaining about the pace–quite the opposite!–but I’m very glad I studied the material in the weeks before the class began. Otherwise, I don’t think I could have absorbed that much information in such a short time.

The Exam

The Level 2 exam is a 1-hour, closed-book test covering the entirety of the course material. You need to bring your government-issued ID and a #2 pencil–the exam booklet and answer sheet are printed by WSET and provided by the course instructor.

There are 50 multiple-choice questions, with 2 percentage points awarded for each correct answer. WSET provides three grade ranges for passing students: Pass (55% and above), Pass with Merit (70% and above), and Pass with Distinction (85% and above).

Like I said, our class was a fairly serious bunch. I’m sure everyone who took the exam with me was hoping for Pass with Distinction!

Our exam took place directly after the fourth class meeting, on a Sunday afternoon. You are not allowed to drink wine during the exam. In fact, I didn’t even finish my last wine–a Late Bottled Vintage Port–because I wanted to be alert and sober-ish while filling out my answer sheet.

Having sat for the test, I can now answer the question: How hard is the Level 2 exam? We’ll go with “moderately challenging.” It’s a medium-plus exam.

Someone who hasn’t studied or worked in wine, I think, would probably find it quite difficult. There’s questions about storage, service, production, regulation, climate and viticulture. Any wine style or method covered in the book is fair game, even the obscure ones. My exam had at least two questions about a niche-y regional variety that the textbook only devotes a scant page to. So having strong general knowledge about common French grapes probably isn’t enough to get a good score.

That being said, the exam was actually easier than I expected overall. I don’t want to get too confident, but there’s a strong possibility I over-prepared. I’m certain I missed a question or two–I’m still a bit bruised from kicking myself over it–but I have a feeling I’m going to be happy with the results.

I do know that I’m very happy with the class, and the time and money spent on this experience. It was one of the most fun and immersive wine weekends I’ve ever had. I don’t feel that I’m ready for Level 3 yet–but I plan to study the book, practice my blind tasting, and enroll later this year. I’ll post my study tips for Level 2 later…and of course, my results!