I have had a few requests to both give some challenging study questions or to give some examples of what might appear on the more advanced level exams as questions. There have also been a few conversations with other students regarding how I study for advanced level questions. I thought I would bundle these together in one single initial article and then continue on with a series each time I post. I will answer these questions here, but in the future I will simply post the question(s) initially and then follow up the following time with answers. This will give those who are studying a chance to answer on their own, and then we can discuss as needed. So here goes, and remember these are fairly advanced level questions...answers are on the bottom if you want to challenge yourself at first.
1 - Name three Chateaux from the Cantenac commune which were classified in 1855 and state there classification. 2 - Name four wards in the Stellenbosch district of South Africa. 3 - For which grape variety is Ull de Llebra a synonym? 4 - Name three Grand Cru villages of the Cote de Blancs. 5 - What is the maximum sugar content allowed for Brut style Champagne? (answer in grams per liter) 6 - Name 6 sub-districts of the Willamette Valley. 7 - What is the maximum permitted alcoholic strength of a distillate from the second distillation in the Cognac region? 8 - What is the main flavoring ingredient in Suze? 9 - Which house produces Quinta de Terre Feita Port? Ok, so first a little about how I study, and how I study specifically for certain styles of questions. To begin, it is necessary to know what style of questions you will be tasked with on a certification exam. For those studying the introductory levels of WSET, the questions are in the format of multiple choice answers. One piece of advice I often give students is that they should be prepared for questions that are asked with multiple option answers (1 and 2 only, 1-2-3, all of the above). The Brits are big fans of layering the question answer options, so it is absolutely necessary to have a good understanding of the theoretical material in order to answer correctly. You cannot just guess at many of the questions. There are also a lot of questions that are asked in a double-negative or slightly twisty way. Again, the best advise is to read the whole questions and understand what is being asked. This is the same for upper level exams where the answers are in written response. For those studying WSET Level 3 or Diploma, as well as CMS Advanced and MW candidates, almost all of the questions responses will be in written format. The best tip I ever received in this process was to make sure I read the question, understood exactly what is being asked and then only answered the question. Don't get caught in doing a brain dump of facts you think are related to the question, as this may not really answer the question. Practice writing long-form answers or mini essays is the best practice you can employ for this. Getting yourself familiar with writing, writing under pressure and timed, will be a critical asset for being successful in any of these exams. Writing a longer answer out also forces you to look at more material and a broader scope of resources, which will help build your theoretical knowledge base. Ok, so once I know what type of questions and exam format I will be facing, it is important to study properly. As stated, I like to answer questions in long form, and this means knowing a lot of material across a spectrum of concepts and study areas. For me this helps to build a solid foundation of base knowledge, and it forces me to be able to think across topics and then pull these ideas together in a focused answer. Keep in mind, some answers may simply be a regurgitation of facts, while others will task you to pull in multiple layers of answers to get the answer. Some of the tactics I employ in studying include the following:
This is just a taste of what and how I study. It is a layered approach and is generally designed for a more advanced certification goal. But, anyone can take pieces of this and make it work for them. I study in my way, though, so what works for me is not always going to be the best for you. The single best thing for anyone though, is to make a plan and stick with it. ANSWERS!!! 1 - Name three Chateaux from the Cantenac commune which were classified in 1855, and state their classification. So for this question you need to know what the 1855 Classification was, where it was, and what Cantenac is. The 1855 Classification was done for the Paris Exposition, and ranked the Chateau of Bordeaux's left bank and Sauternes based on their common selling price, at the time. It was assumed that the higher the market was willing to pay for a wine, the better it must be. Cantenac is part of the Margaux commune, and is often referred to as Cantenac-Margaux. Wines in the classification were sorted in a ranking of growths or "crus" from 1st to 5th. The Chateau that could be used to answer this question are:
2 - Name four wards in the Stellenbosch district of South Africa. This answer could include the following wards of Stellenbosch: Banghoek, Bottelary, Devon Valley, Jonkershoek Valley, Papegaaiberg, Polkadraai Hills, Simonsberg-Stellenbosch and Vlottenburg 3 - For which grape variety is Ull de Llebra a synonym? This is one of the many names for Tempranillo, Ull de Llebre is used frequently in the Peñedes region of northeastern Spain. 4 - Name three Grand Cru villages of the Cote de Blancs. The Côte des Blancs includes six villages classified as grand cru. One way to remember them is using "CA COOL"
5 - What is the maximum sugar content allowed for Brut style Champagne? (answer in grams per liter) The maximum amount allowed today is 12 grams of sugar per litre for a Champagne Brut. 6 - Name 6 sub-districts of the Willamette Valley. There are actually 9 AVAs, currently, in the Willamette Valley, these include...
7 - What is the maximum permitted alcoholic strength of a distillate from the second distillation in the Cognac region? The alcoholic strength of the newly made spirit from the second distillation in Cognac, also known as the bonne chauffe, may not exceed 72.4% abv. 8 - What is the main flavoring ingredient in Suze? The main ingredient is gentian root, specifically the species gentiana lutea (Great Yellow Gentian), which imparts the bitter, vegetal flavors the drink is known for. 9 - Which house produces Quinta de Terra Feita Port? Taylor-Fladgate owns and produces wine from this property, which is located on the west bank of the River Pinhão.
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ABOUT THE Author
Brian Mitchell runs The New England Wine Academy, and is responsible for the content of this blog. With 30 years of drinks industry experience, Brian has learned a few things, but everyday he is learning more. This blog helps to bring that knowledge to you. Archives
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