Unit 1

• The key factors in the production of wine: location, grape growing, winemaking, maturation and bottling

• How these key factors influence the key characteristics of the principal

  • still wines of the world

  • sparkling wines of the world

  • fortified wines of the world

• How to apply your understanding to explain wine style and quality

Unit 2

• How to taste wines, describe their characteristics and evaluate their quality, using the WSET Level 3 Systematic Approach to Tasting Wine®.

Once you have registered, you will receive a study pack by post:

- a book of approximately 200 pages (small A4 format)

- a student workbook

- a hardback tasting sheet

This training can be done remotely (online) or face-to-face.

For distance learning, you will be able to take advantage of wine tasting sessions or you will have to provide your own bottles to taste during the tasting session.

As far as face-to-face courses are concerned, you'll find organisations that offer evening classes over several months, or others that offer a 3-day course, followed by a break dedicated to practice and exam preparation, and then a second 2-day session culminating in the exam.

It's up to you to decide which format suits you best 🙂

This will depend on your training organization and the format of your program. Overall, you need to set aside a minimum of 84 hours of your time, i.e. 30 hours of courses with a WSET-accredited center (classroom or online), 51 hours of personal work and 2 hours of final exams.

The WSET Level 2 Diploma in Wine or an equivalent level of experience is recommended to apply for the WSET Level 3 Diploma in Wine, but not compulsory!

However, if you don't have Level 2, some training organizations offer an entry test for a fee.

Of course, you must be of legal drinking age in the country in which you are training to be able to take part in the tastings, i.e. 18 in France.

You will have to go to the exam location communicated by your training organization.

Exam length = 2h30

The exam consists of a theoretical part and a practical part.

The 2-hours theoretical part consists of a 50 Multiple Choice Questions and 4 short written answer questions.

The practical part lasts 30 minutes and consists of a blind tasting of 2 wines.

To pass the theory test, candidates must obtain a minimum mark of 55% for each part:

• 55% for the MCQ section

• 55% for the open questions section

To pass the practical tasting test, candidates must obtain a minimum mark of 55%.

• Pass with distinction: Aggregate mark of 80% and above with no individual examination paper below 65%

• Pass with merit: Aggregate mark of between 65% and 79%

• Pass: Aggregate mark of between 55% and 64%

• Fail: Aggregate mark of between 45% and 54%

• Fail unclassified: Aggregate mark of 44% and below

Yes, if you didn't pass the exam, you can. But BE CAREFUL, retaking the final exam obviously entails additional costs!

If you pass only the theoretical part, you can retake the practical part, and vice versa if you pass only the tasting part, you can retake only the practical part. You don't have to take the whole thing again.

However, it is not possible to retake an exam in order to improve your grade.

There is more than 500 approved programme providers for WSET level 3 in Wine all around the world!

You can find your training center using this map.