WSET Unit 6 - 2nd attempt

I had my WSET Unit 6 exam on Nov 3rd. I think I passed, but it could still be close.

I was fortunate in that this time, my hands, while tired and cramping before I finished writing nevertheless didn't start shaking as they did the first time. Of course I think the caffeine had something to play during that affair.

I have learned a couple of things.

. If, like me, you spend a lot of time on the computer, don't hand-write letters or papers that much, then you need to practice your hand-writing. Hand write out all the topics you might encounter. Build up your hand writing skills.

. I usually write in pen. Last time I took this test, I also used a pen and when I made mistakes or wanted to add in a few words, it got very sloppy. I had a lot of cross outs. But I hate pencils, with their hexagram sides and points that are made to grip the pencil but just dig into my finger. I also hate how the point wears down and affects my writing style. 2 months ago I went to the store and bought 6 types of mechanical pencil. I tried all of them and found the one that felt best in my hand. Even better, is that it erases easily, and the point is always sharp and fresh. I will only use these from now on.

. Read the small print at the top of your tasting page: It could say "These wines are all from the same region or country". This saved me when I thought I smelled acetaldehyde and was thinking Sherry when the wine was really an aged Sercial. I knew my 2nd wines was a Madeira and therefore went back to re-look at the first wine and re-evaluated it correctly. The examiners review notes mention time and again that people lose points because they fail to read / apply this hint.

. Be aware of sub-topics within a larger one. I have seen this twice now. On this exam there was a question about VOS, and VORS Sherry. There is no specific topic in the Oxford Companion about this. It is buried deep down in the topic on Sherry itself. If you just look at the larger topic, (Sherry) you can miss some detail that is actually large enough to be a topic on its own.

. Don't forget your Who, What, When, Where, Why, and Hows. One question on my test was "Write a paragraph on Languedoc". While keeping to the context of Fortified Wines, you still have to put down as much as you can about the topic. So first tell what and where it is. Talk about the climate. Talk about the terrain.
I mentioned 3 of the 4 VDN DOCs that I could remember. I mentioned that Arnaldus de Villenova (not part of the syllabus, but interesting nevertheless) invented the mutage process at the University of Montpelier in Languedoc. Your job is to tie together as many facts as you can as long as you stay on topic.

. Regarding tasting. I used to follow the WSET - SAT in order of items on the taste part. i.e. I would check sweetness, acidity, tannin, alcohol, body, intensity, flavors, length. I found myself having to take several sips to pull together my thoughts on each of these items. This took a lot of time. After I took a review tasting session with (MW Candidate) Maureen Downey, she pointed out that I really needed to speed this up. AND she said that I should figure out an order that worked for me. Now I just do two sips. Sweetness, body, (slurp) alcohol. (Spit) Acidity and Tannin develop slower and I judge these after spitting. (Next sip.) Intensity, flavors, and length. Also some flavors might develop during the first sip, But the mouth is now prepared to taste.

. Your mouth does wake up. Maureen mentioned that some of the MW students wash their mouths with Champagne before entering the testing room. It wakes the mouth up and saves a couple of minutes during the tasting session.

. Smell all your wines before tasting any of them. One may be very high alcohol, for example, that you really should taste last. Do your tasting in an order that works for you. The wines are not necessarily set out in a good tasting order. Just don't mix up your notes.

. My current goal is to write a complete tasting note in7-8 minutes or less. On a normal WSET exam that will leave 35-40 minutes to write the 3 topic questions that they will give us. By a complete note, I mean one with all the options. Normally 20 points are given for the basic notes and 5 points for the optional areas of : Variety, Quality, Price, Region, Country. You never know what combination of these last sections they will give you to make up the 5 points. So always practice by writing them all.

If anybody reads this blog and wants my notes, I have 36 pages of notes that I took from the Oxford Companion and various other sources and compiled them all in one place to make studying them easier.
Send me an e-mail and I will send you my notes.

john