WSET Level 3 Award in Wines – USA Exam Questions and Answers With Verified
Solutions 2025
What are the four main states of relevance in the wine industry in the United States? - ✔✔1) California
2) Washington
3) Oregon
4) New York
True or False: The Federal wine laws of the USA pertaining to geographical indication merely seek to
guarantee the provenance of a wine. - ✔✔True
True or False: An AVA can be of any size and can overlap. - ✔✔True
Wines labelled with an AVA must meet which 4 requirements? - ✔✔1) Vintage Date - 95% of the fruit
must come from the stated vintage
2) Source of Fruit - 85% of the fruit must come from the AVA
3) Varietal Labelling - 75% of the fruit must come from that stated on the label
4) Estate Bottling - 100% of the grapes Controlled by winery must be in the AVA
How do State Laws affect the AVA system established by Federal Law? - ✔✔State laws vary considerably
from state to state. For example, Oregon requires most of it's varietal wines to contain 90% of the
variety mentioned on the label while CA only requires 75%.
What % of grapes represented on a wine label must be in the wine for Oregon? Washington? CA? -
✔✔Oregon = 90%
Washington = 85%
California = 75%
How does New York differ from Oregon, Washington, and California in regards to varietal labelling? -
✔✔Though it requires 75% of the wine to come from the grapes stated on the label (just like CA), they
are also allowed to add 35% sugar and water.
, Though the climate of California varies in range considerably, what is the one factor common in all areas
and how does it affect vineyard practices? - ✔✔A lack of rainfall during ripening season. To counter this,
drip or sprinkler irrigation is widely practiced.
Describe the climate classification system developed at the Davis campus of the University of California.
- ✔✔Because climate varies considerably in California, there has been much research find the the vines
that best match each microclimate. To help organize this information, UC Davis created a climate
classification system based on "degree days."
Regional climates are ranked on a 5 zone scale of I (the coolest) to V (the hottest).
According to the UC Davis climate classification system, which zones are considered the most suitable
for the production of premium wines? - ✔✔Zones I - III
How does the fog, which is particularly prevalent during the growing season in the Central Valley, affect
the grapes in these coastal areas? - ✔✔The fog helps grapes to ripen more slowly (as it brings down the
temperature of the area). The fruit is allowed to develop more intensity and retain acidity; thus, adding
finesse to the wines.
Which grape variety is California's largest wine grape crop, making up about 20% of the annual harvest?
- ✔✔Chardonnay
Which two Sonoma AVAs are cooler regions, able to produce high quality Pinot Noirs and Chardonnays?
- ✔✔Russian River Valley and Carneros
What is the most harvested red grape variety in California? - ✔✔Zinfandel
Which Croatian and what Italian grape variety did DNA fingerprinting reveal to be equivalent to
Zinfandel? - ✔✔Croatia - Crljenak Kastelanski
Italy - Primativo
Solutions 2025
What are the four main states of relevance in the wine industry in the United States? - ✔✔1) California
2) Washington
3) Oregon
4) New York
True or False: The Federal wine laws of the USA pertaining to geographical indication merely seek to
guarantee the provenance of a wine. - ✔✔True
True or False: An AVA can be of any size and can overlap. - ✔✔True
Wines labelled with an AVA must meet which 4 requirements? - ✔✔1) Vintage Date - 95% of the fruit
must come from the stated vintage
2) Source of Fruit - 85% of the fruit must come from the AVA
3) Varietal Labelling - 75% of the fruit must come from that stated on the label
4) Estate Bottling - 100% of the grapes Controlled by winery must be in the AVA
How do State Laws affect the AVA system established by Federal Law? - ✔✔State laws vary considerably
from state to state. For example, Oregon requires most of it's varietal wines to contain 90% of the
variety mentioned on the label while CA only requires 75%.
What % of grapes represented on a wine label must be in the wine for Oregon? Washington? CA? -
✔✔Oregon = 90%
Washington = 85%
California = 75%
How does New York differ from Oregon, Washington, and California in regards to varietal labelling? -
✔✔Though it requires 75% of the wine to come from the grapes stated on the label (just like CA), they
are also allowed to add 35% sugar and water.
, Though the climate of California varies in range considerably, what is the one factor common in all areas
and how does it affect vineyard practices? - ✔✔A lack of rainfall during ripening season. To counter this,
drip or sprinkler irrigation is widely practiced.
Describe the climate classification system developed at the Davis campus of the University of California.
- ✔✔Because climate varies considerably in California, there has been much research find the the vines
that best match each microclimate. To help organize this information, UC Davis created a climate
classification system based on "degree days."
Regional climates are ranked on a 5 zone scale of I (the coolest) to V (the hottest).
According to the UC Davis climate classification system, which zones are considered the most suitable
for the production of premium wines? - ✔✔Zones I - III
How does the fog, which is particularly prevalent during the growing season in the Central Valley, affect
the grapes in these coastal areas? - ✔✔The fog helps grapes to ripen more slowly (as it brings down the
temperature of the area). The fruit is allowed to develop more intensity and retain acidity; thus, adding
finesse to the wines.
Which grape variety is California's largest wine grape crop, making up about 20% of the annual harvest?
- ✔✔Chardonnay
Which two Sonoma AVAs are cooler regions, able to produce high quality Pinot Noirs and Chardonnays?
- ✔✔Russian River Valley and Carneros
What is the most harvested red grape variety in California? - ✔✔Zinfandel
Which Croatian and what Italian grape variety did DNA fingerprinting reveal to be equivalent to
Zinfandel? - ✔✔Croatia - Crljenak Kastelanski
Italy - Primativo
