WSET Level 2

Clarity
clear - hazy  

Intensity
pale – medium – deep

Colour  
white: lemon – gold – amber
rosé:   pink – salmon – orange
red:   purple – ruby – garnet – tawny

Condition 
clean – unclean  

Intensity 
light – medium – pronounced  

Aroma characteristics
e.g. fruits, flowers, spices, vegetables, oak aromas, other

Sweetness
dry – off-dry – medium – sweet  

Acidity
low – medium – high   

Tannin
low – medium – high   

Body
light – medium – full  

Flavour characteristics
e.g. fruits, flowers, spices, vegetables, oak flavours, other  

Finish
short – medium – long

Quality 
faulty – poor – acceptable – good – very good – outstanding

Are the flavours simple/generic or specific? Fresh or cooked? Ripe or unripe?  

Floral
blossom, rose, violet  

Green Fruit
green apple, red apple, gooseberry, pear, grape  

Citrus Fruit
grapefruit, lemon, lime (juice or zest?)  

Stone Fruit
peach, apricot, nectarine  

Tropical Fruit
banana, lychee, mango, melon, passion fruit, pineapple  

Red Fruit
redcurrant, cranberry, raspberry, strawberry, red cherry, plum  

Black Fruit
blackcurrant, blackberry, blueberry, black cherry  

Dried Fruit
fig, prune, raisin, sultana, kirsch, jamminess, cooked, baked, stewed fruits, preserved fruits  

Underripeness
green bell pepper (capsicum), grass, white pepper, leafiness, tomato, potato  

Herbaceous
grass, asparagus, blackcurrant leaf  

Herbal
eucalyptus, mint, medicinal, lavender, fennel, dill  

Vegetable
cabbage, peas, beans, black olive, green olive  

Sweet Spices
cinnamon, cloves, ginger, nutmeg, vanilla  

Pungent Spices
black/white pepper, liquorice, juniper

Simplicity /Neutality  simple, neutral, indistinct  

Autolytic yeast, biscuit, bread, toast, pastry, lees  

Dairy butter, cheese, cream, yoghurt  

Oak vanilla, toast, cedar, charred wood, smoke, resinous  

Kernel almond, coconut, hazelnut, walnut, chocolate, coffee  

Animal leather, meaty, farmyard  

Maturity vegetal, mushroom, hay, wet leaves, forest floor, game, savoury, tobacco, cedar, honey, cereal  

Mineral earth, petrol, rubber, tar, stony/steely, wet wool  

Colour: White

Preferred Climate(s):
Cool, Moderate, Hot,

High In:
Acidity, Body, Intensity

Low In:
Tannin

Flavour Characteristics:
Citrus, Green Fruit, Stone Fruit, Tropical Fruit, Vanilla, Apple, Peach, Toast, Butter, Smoke, Melon, Lemon, Oak, Stoney,Vegetal,

Blending Partners:
Semilion, Colombard, Chenin Blanc, Viognier

France

• Chablis: Bone dry wine, high acidity, green fruit and citrus notes. 
• Burgundy: Cote d’Or – Cote de Beaune – Meursault, Puligny-Montrachet – Full bodied, complex flavours including citrus, white stone and tropical fruit, oak, spice and savoury notes.
• Maconnais: Large volumes of moderately priced chardonnay with light fruit (melon, citrus) with no oak Macon!
• Pouilly fuisse: Full bodied chardonnay, tropical (pineapple and melon). Oaked

Australia

• Yarra Valley, Adelaide Hills, Margaret River – Pronouced fruit (fresh citrus and melon), well integrated oak. 

New Zealand

• Hawkes Bay, Gisborne, Marlborough – High acidity and oak flavours

North America

• California – Coastal – Russian river, Sonoma, Carneros –Styles vary from full bodied, intense rich citrus and ripe peach flavours, heavily oaked to very savoury styles similar to Cote d’Or.

Chile

• Central Valley, Casablanca Valley – Banana and melon flavours

Argentina

• Mendoza – Intense fruit flavours

South Africa

• Coastal – Walker Bay Ward