WSET LEVEL 2 SUMMARY
CHAPTER 1
TASTING AND EVALUATING WINE
SAT: systematic approach to tasting wine.
PREPARING FOR TASTING
Ideal environment will have:
- Good lighting for judging the wine’s appearance.
- Free of strong odors to avoid interference with the wine’s aromas.
- Sufficient space to lay out your wine glasses and make notes.
- Spittoons or cups should be available.
The ISO glass is suitable for evaluating wines: the rounded bowl (which aids with swirling the wine to release aromas),
and the inward sloping walls (which capture these aromas at the tops of the glass).
- Use a 5 CL (1.7 US fl. Oz.) sample.
APPEARANCE
Intensity = how much color the wine has.
- Held the glass at 45 degrees.
White wines Red wines
Pale; a broad watery rim. Pale: if the wine is lightly pigmented from the rim to the
core.
Deep: if the pigment reaches almost to the rim.
Deep: if the wine is intensely pigmented right up to the
rim.
COLOUR
White wines can be placed o a scale that runs from lemon to amber.
- Most common is lemon.
- Gold: hint of orange or brown.
- Amber: noticeable level of browning.
Red wines can be placed on a scale that runs from purple through to tawny.
- Most common is ruby.
- Purple: noticeable blue or purple color.
- Garnet: orange or brown colour but the wine is still more red than brown.
- Tawny: wine is browner than red.
Rose wines can be considered as pale red wines.
- Pink: very pure pink colour.
, - Pink-orange: shows a hint of orange in a pink-coloured wine.
- Orange: orange is a dominant color -> very rare.
NOSE
The difference in character and the clarity of the aromas account for much of the difference between basic-quality and
very fine wines.
- Steps: swirl the glass – put your nose over the rim – short sniff.
AROMA’S INTENSITY
Three categories:
1. Pronounced: if the aromas are immediately apparent when you insert your nose into the glass.
2. Light: after swirling, you fund the aromas to be faint and hard to detect.
3. Medium: when it is not pronounced or light.
AROMA CHARACTERISTICS
Three main types:
1. Primary aromas = that come from the grapes or are created during the fermentation process.
o A simple wine shows a very limited number in the same range as more complex wines display many more
primary aromas in a range of clusters.
2. Secondary aromas = created by post-fermentation winemaking.
o Most common: the ones extracted form oak, such as vanilla and smoke.
o Cream and butter from malolactic conversion.
o Toasted bread and biscuit aromas as a result of autolysis in sparkling wines.
3. Tertiary aromas = origin in the ageing process -> could be through oxidative (caused by the action of oxygen). Or
due to a long period in-bottle.
PALATE
Consists of the sweetness, acidity, tannin, alcohol, body, flavour intensity, flavour characteristics and finish.
Sweetness = the taste of sugar present in the wine.
- Dry: no sugar or has levels that are so low that they cannot be detected by the tongue.
- Off-dry: tiny amount.
- Medium: distinct presence of sugar, but not sweet enough to partner most desserts.
- Sweet: presence of sugar has become the prominent feature. Most classic sweet wines such as Sauternes and
Port.
Acidity = wines with low acidity are noticeable and high-acid wines are not as high in acidity as some acidic foods such
as vinegar.
- Is detected on the tongue -> causes a tingling sensation and makes your mouth water.
- Two things to remember:
, 1. High levels of sugar and acid can mask each other.
2. Alcohol can create a burning sensation that feels similar to acidity.
Tannin = bind your saliva and cause your mouth to dry up and feel rough.
- Can also have a bitter taste at the back of your mouth.
Alcohol = contributes to the body of wine.
- High percentage can make a wine seem heavier in the mouth.
- Low level, the wine can seem a bit watery, unless there is another component such as sugar to give the wine
body.
Three-point scale:
- Low: below 11 % abv.
- Medium: between 11 – 13.9% abv.
- High: 14% abv and above.
For fortified wines:
- Low: 15 – 16.4% abv.
- Medium: 16.5 – 18.4% abv.
- High: 18.5% abv and above.
Body = overall impression of how the wine feels in the mouth using the sense of touch rather than taste.
- Created by structural components (tannin, alcohol, sugar and acidity).
- Most times main factor is alcohol.
Flavour intensity = how powerful are they? Generally, a wine will have the same flavour intensity as aroma intensity on
the nose.
- The warming of the wine in your mouth van makes some characteristics more apparent than they were on the
nose -> same for flavour characteristics.
Finish = collection of sensations after you have swallowed or spat the wine out.
- How long the sensations linger is an important indicator of quality, but when assessing the length of the finish
you should only count the persistence of the desirable sensations.
- Short: if the pleasant flavors disappear and a structural component such as acid is the lingering flavour on the
palate.
- Long: flavors last as long or beyond the structural components.
CONCLUSIONS
Quality level -> number of criteria used:
1. Balance = a set of scales, with one element of the wine helping to balance another.
2. Length / finish = refers to how long the pleasant sensations linger after the wine has been swallowed or spat out.
3. Identifiable characteristics / intensity of flavors = does it taste like how you expected, given the grape variety used,
and the production methods chosen.
4. Complexity = complex flavors and aromas are desirable features in many wines. Can come from the primary
aromas and flavors alone, or it may come form a combination of these with secondary and tertiary characteristics.
, CHAPTER 2
PAIRING WINE AND FOOD
Food that is consumed with wine has an affect on the way you perceive the wine, and wine can also have a similar
effect on food. The purpose id then to take advantage of these effects, ideally provide more pleasure than it would
consumed separately.
Pairings should take into account the preferences and / or sensitivities of the individual, as well as the basic interactions
between food and wine.
There are two components in food that tend to make a win’s taste ‘harder’ (more drying and bitter, more acidic, less
sweet, and less fruity). These are sweetness and umami.
- Salt and acid tend to make wines taste ‘softer’ (less drying and bitter, less acidic, sweeter, and fruitier).
OTHER CONSIDERATIONS
Chili heat = a warming or burning sensation. The effects are greater in wines with high alcohol levels than with lower
alcohol levels.
Flavour intensity = desirable for the flavor intensities to be matched so that one does not overpower the other.
Acid and fat = combination of acidic wines with fatty or oily food to be very satisfying.
CHAPTER 1
TASTING AND EVALUATING WINE
SAT: systematic approach to tasting wine.
PREPARING FOR TASTING
Ideal environment will have:
- Good lighting for judging the wine’s appearance.
- Free of strong odors to avoid interference with the wine’s aromas.
- Sufficient space to lay out your wine glasses and make notes.
- Spittoons or cups should be available.
The ISO glass is suitable for evaluating wines: the rounded bowl (which aids with swirling the wine to release aromas),
and the inward sloping walls (which capture these aromas at the tops of the glass).
- Use a 5 CL (1.7 US fl. Oz.) sample.
APPEARANCE
Intensity = how much color the wine has.
- Held the glass at 45 degrees.
White wines Red wines
Pale; a broad watery rim. Pale: if the wine is lightly pigmented from the rim to the
core.
Deep: if the pigment reaches almost to the rim.
Deep: if the wine is intensely pigmented right up to the
rim.
COLOUR
White wines can be placed o a scale that runs from lemon to amber.
- Most common is lemon.
- Gold: hint of orange or brown.
- Amber: noticeable level of browning.
Red wines can be placed on a scale that runs from purple through to tawny.
- Most common is ruby.
- Purple: noticeable blue or purple color.
- Garnet: orange or brown colour but the wine is still more red than brown.
- Tawny: wine is browner than red.
Rose wines can be considered as pale red wines.
- Pink: very pure pink colour.
, - Pink-orange: shows a hint of orange in a pink-coloured wine.
- Orange: orange is a dominant color -> very rare.
NOSE
The difference in character and the clarity of the aromas account for much of the difference between basic-quality and
very fine wines.
- Steps: swirl the glass – put your nose over the rim – short sniff.
AROMA’S INTENSITY
Three categories:
1. Pronounced: if the aromas are immediately apparent when you insert your nose into the glass.
2. Light: after swirling, you fund the aromas to be faint and hard to detect.
3. Medium: when it is not pronounced or light.
AROMA CHARACTERISTICS
Three main types:
1. Primary aromas = that come from the grapes or are created during the fermentation process.
o A simple wine shows a very limited number in the same range as more complex wines display many more
primary aromas in a range of clusters.
2. Secondary aromas = created by post-fermentation winemaking.
o Most common: the ones extracted form oak, such as vanilla and smoke.
o Cream and butter from malolactic conversion.
o Toasted bread and biscuit aromas as a result of autolysis in sparkling wines.
3. Tertiary aromas = origin in the ageing process -> could be through oxidative (caused by the action of oxygen). Or
due to a long period in-bottle.
PALATE
Consists of the sweetness, acidity, tannin, alcohol, body, flavour intensity, flavour characteristics and finish.
Sweetness = the taste of sugar present in the wine.
- Dry: no sugar or has levels that are so low that they cannot be detected by the tongue.
- Off-dry: tiny amount.
- Medium: distinct presence of sugar, but not sweet enough to partner most desserts.
- Sweet: presence of sugar has become the prominent feature. Most classic sweet wines such as Sauternes and
Port.
Acidity = wines with low acidity are noticeable and high-acid wines are not as high in acidity as some acidic foods such
as vinegar.
- Is detected on the tongue -> causes a tingling sensation and makes your mouth water.
- Two things to remember:
, 1. High levels of sugar and acid can mask each other.
2. Alcohol can create a burning sensation that feels similar to acidity.
Tannin = bind your saliva and cause your mouth to dry up and feel rough.
- Can also have a bitter taste at the back of your mouth.
Alcohol = contributes to the body of wine.
- High percentage can make a wine seem heavier in the mouth.
- Low level, the wine can seem a bit watery, unless there is another component such as sugar to give the wine
body.
Three-point scale:
- Low: below 11 % abv.
- Medium: between 11 – 13.9% abv.
- High: 14% abv and above.
For fortified wines:
- Low: 15 – 16.4% abv.
- Medium: 16.5 – 18.4% abv.
- High: 18.5% abv and above.
Body = overall impression of how the wine feels in the mouth using the sense of touch rather than taste.
- Created by structural components (tannin, alcohol, sugar and acidity).
- Most times main factor is alcohol.
Flavour intensity = how powerful are they? Generally, a wine will have the same flavour intensity as aroma intensity on
the nose.
- The warming of the wine in your mouth van makes some characteristics more apparent than they were on the
nose -> same for flavour characteristics.
Finish = collection of sensations after you have swallowed or spat the wine out.
- How long the sensations linger is an important indicator of quality, but when assessing the length of the finish
you should only count the persistence of the desirable sensations.
- Short: if the pleasant flavors disappear and a structural component such as acid is the lingering flavour on the
palate.
- Long: flavors last as long or beyond the structural components.
CONCLUSIONS
Quality level -> number of criteria used:
1. Balance = a set of scales, with one element of the wine helping to balance another.
2. Length / finish = refers to how long the pleasant sensations linger after the wine has been swallowed or spat out.
3. Identifiable characteristics / intensity of flavors = does it taste like how you expected, given the grape variety used,
and the production methods chosen.
4. Complexity = complex flavors and aromas are desirable features in many wines. Can come from the primary
aromas and flavors alone, or it may come form a combination of these with secondary and tertiary characteristics.
, CHAPTER 2
PAIRING WINE AND FOOD
Food that is consumed with wine has an affect on the way you perceive the wine, and wine can also have a similar
effect on food. The purpose id then to take advantage of these effects, ideally provide more pleasure than it would
consumed separately.
Pairings should take into account the preferences and / or sensitivities of the individual, as well as the basic interactions
between food and wine.
There are two components in food that tend to make a win’s taste ‘harder’ (more drying and bitter, more acidic, less
sweet, and less fruity). These are sweetness and umami.
- Salt and acid tend to make wines taste ‘softer’ (less drying and bitter, less acidic, sweeter, and fruitier).
OTHER CONSIDERATIONS
Chili heat = a warming or burning sensation. The effects are greater in wines with high alcohol levels than with lower
alcohol levels.
Flavour intensity = desirable for the flavor intensities to be matched so that one does not overpower the other.
Acid and fat = combination of acidic wines with fatty or oily food to be very satisfying.
