A guide for the beginners outside of the hospitality, spirits, winemaking, and restaurant industries

I started my sommelier journey last year, and it has been one of the most rewarding experiences of my life. In my personal opinion, it is one of the coolest professions or hobbies someone could have! There is not a ton of information on the internet about how to get started, as the majority of people participating in these classes and certifications are coming from the hospitality, spirits, winemaking, and restaurant industries.

I have seen one-time wine tasting classes grow in popularity amongst millenials and Gen Z, but not necessarily full blown courses or certifications. I will caveat that pursuing this path does require a large amount of time (and money) investment, but there is a high chance of payoff both personally and potentially pursuing it in a professional setting.

Luckily, my sister works in the alcohol distribution industry and showed me the ropes on how to get started — and now, I will share with all of my lovely readers! There are generally two paths to take, as I would strongly suggest getting certified by one of these highly regarded institutions. There are of course others out there, but these two have generally been around the longest, provide a large amount of course availability, and are internationally recognized brands.

There is the Wine & Spirits Education Trust (WSET), and the Court of Master Sommeliers (CMS). I personally have done my certifications with the first, WSET, as its courses start at a more introductory level than CMS. Some people end up pursuing certifications from both by first doing a couple WSET certifications, then moving onto CMS certifications. If you are a fellow non-industry person with a passion for wine, I would advise also starting out with the WSET path. Since it is the path I took, WSET will be my focus for this blog as I have the most experience with it.

WSET offers four different certification levels. You do not necessarily need to go in order, but it is suggested. If there was one to skip, it would probably be WSET 1. My ‘WSET 1’ course in particular was offered in one full day with the certification exam taken at the end of the class. It runs around $350. With a solid instructor, everyone in the class is very capable of passing no matter what background you are coming from. This is also a great certification to take if you do not want to put in a ton of investment, but will still get a great introductory overview of wines with a shiny certificate.

The second is ‘WSET 2’ and is offered in three full day classes with the exam taken at the end of the third class. This one definitely requires much more studying and personal time investment (and costs around $900), but is still very doable and generally most of the class passes. You will learn a lot about the different regions and grape types of wine in this course. This is a great certification if you want to extend your learning past WSET 1 without a huge time commitment. Generally, people working in the industry will be required to pass WSET 2.

A big leap is taken between WSET 2 and WSET 3, as this is where the pass rates start to dramatically drop (is ~50%) — and inversely the time and money investment dramatically increases (it costs around $1500). Most people will stop at WSET 2, as the WSET 3 requires intense studying and is composed of not only a written exam, but also a blind tasting of two wines. It is considered one of the toughest exams in the world, and meant for those who plan to pursue wines professionally, and/or really want to delve deep into the world of wines. You will really expand upon the regions and grape types from WSET 2. I plan to sign up for this one either this upcoming winter or spring, when I am able to completely block out my weekends for studying and practicing tasting. In the meantime, I use this blog as my forcing function to write reviews about different wines.

And finally, WSET 4 (or WSET Diploma) is mainly meant for those who work in the wine industry. It generally takes about two to three years to complete, with each semester costing ~$2500 as well as additional time and money investment throughout that period of time (some sources say it ends up costing upwards of five figures). It is one of the most highly respected certifications, and definitely beneficial for those in the industry! Upon passing, you are able to apply to the Master of Wine program.

I highly suggest signing up for in-person classes, as that way you are provided all of the wine and course materials, and are in a more interactive environment to ask questions and learn with other peers. And, you are able to taste from the same exact bottle and get feedback from your instructor. With online courses, they may be self-paced and you may have to choose your own wine bottles to taste.

If you are located in the Los Angeles area, I took my certifications through The Wine House. They generally offer each certification once a quarter, and I highly recommend signing up with Monica Marin. The Wine House’s in-person classes in particular are located on the edge of Santa Monica and Sawtelle, so I actually walk to the classes which works out well when we are tasting dozens of bottles in a single day.

If you live further away, I would assess if you are able to Uber/Lyft, take public transport, or have a friend or family member drop-off and pick-up (see photo below of the amount of bottles tasted in a single WSET 2 class). If you live in another part of the world, research keywords of WSET, the level of certification you want to pursue, and in-person to find one near you.

I hope this has served as a solid introduction to pursuing learning about the wine world! I will definitely write future blogs on the basics of wine and wine tasting, as learned from my WSET 1 and 2 certifications. For anyone else pursuing WSET 3 and beyond, definitely drop me a line to connect! Cheers!

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