Fifteen minutes a wine, every line filled.

The tasting is the part many candidates dread, yet WSET's own blog points out that it is the part more people pass. The task is narrower than it looks. You are not asked to name the wine. You are asked to describe it accurately on a fixed structure, judge its quality and say whether it is ready to drink, twice, in 30 minutes.

This is an independent guide, based on the current specification. Formats change, so check the WSET website before you plan. For the theory paper and an overall plan, see our Level 3 guide.

How the tasting exam works

• Format. Two still wines, tasted blind, in 30 minutes. The specification says the wines may be taken from any of the recommended tasting samples.
• Marks. The specification gives 20 marks to the description and assessment of the white wine and 21 to the red. Marks are not taken off for incorrect answers.
• Pass rule. 55% is needed to pass the tasting, which is assessed on its own. A strong theory paper cannot carry a weak tasting and a strong tasting cannot carry a weak theory paper.
• Marking. The exam is set and marked by a WSET-approved assessor at your provider, against a brief from WSET. The results are verified by WSET.

Candidates who choose not to taste alcohol or who are under the legal age cannot sit this part. The specification gives them a record of achievement for the theory unit instead of the full award.

The note, line by line

The tasting method WSET teaches at Level 3 runs in four parts, always in the same order.

• Appearance. Clarity, the intensity of colour and the colour itself.
• Nose. Condition, intensity, the aroma characteristics and how developed the wine is.
• Palate. Sweetness, acidity, tannin, alcohol and body, then flavour intensity, the flavour characteristics and the length of the finish.
• Conclusions. A quality level (from faulty to outstanding) and a judgement of readiness: too young, ready to drink but able to age, best drunk now or too old.

On most lines you choose one level from a fixed scale. On aromas and flavours you write descriptors. The method only works under pressure if it runs without thought, so learn it until you could write the headings with your eyes closed.

Where the marks go

WSET's own tasting advice is precise about two lines that carry several marks each.

• Aromas: five marks a wine. Write at least five specific descriptors. Raspberry, not berries; black pepper, not spice. Include primary, secondary and tertiary aromas where the wine shows them.
• Flavours: three marks a wine. Write at least three specific descriptors on the palate. "Same as nose" scores nothing, even when it is true.

Completeness matters as much as flair. A note with every line filled and modest descriptors usually beats a beautiful note with gaps.

The small errors that cost the most

WSET's list of common errors is a list of easy marks thrown away.

• Missing lines. Development on the nose and sweetness on the palate are the ones most often forgotten.
• Words off the scale. Use the scale's own terms. WSET's example: "lemon" earns the colour mark and "yellow" does not; "pronounced" earns the intensity mark and "high" does not.
• Ranges. "Medium(+) to high acidity" scores nothing, even if the wine sits in that range. Choose one level.
• Thin readiness. "Drink now" on its own is not enough. Add whether the wine has potential for ageing or is not suitable for it.
• Five levels where there are three. Colour intensity and alcohol are judged on three levels, so medium(+) and medium(-) do not exist on those lines.
• Hiding simplicity. If a wine is simple, say so, on the nose and on the palate.

A scale only works if your medium(+) means the same as everyone else's.

Fifteen minutes a wine

Thirty minutes for two wines leaves no time to invent a method on the day. Split the time evenly and keep to it.

• First minutes. Look and smell, then write the appearance and nose lines straight away, while the first impression is clear.
• Middle. Taste twice: once for structure, once for flavours. Fill every palate line, then add descriptors.
• Last minutes. Conclusions. Judge quality from what you have recorded about balance, intensity, complexity and length, rather than from the price you imagine.

Describe the wine in the glass, not the one you expect. Trying to identify the wine pulls every line towards the guess.

Practise like the exam

Taste in pairs against the clock and write the full note every time. Then compare it with a model note or with a study partner who tasted the same wines, line by line. Calibration is the real work: agreeing what medium(+) acidity or high tannin actually feels like, so that your scale does not drift. For a plain-language refresher on tasting itself, start with a simple method for tasting wine.

On the day, arrive with a clean palate: no lingering coffee, toothpaste or spice.

Tasting is for adults of legal drinking age. Taste and spit, keep water and a spittoon to hand and never drive after a tasting.

Start with one pair

Open a white and a red that you know, ask someone to pour them out of sight and give yourself 30 minutes for both notes. Then check every line against the structure above. The gaps you find in that first pair are the marks you will win back in the exam.