WSET Level3 Practice Short Written Answer Questions (Fortified Wine)
February 24, 2025/
On this page, you can review the content of each chapter from the WSET textbook in a practice short written answer question format tailored to the WSET exam style.
This chapter focuses on Fortified Wine. (7 questions)
Fino is pale lemon in color with bread-like aromas, while Oloroso is brown with leather and walnut aromas. Explain how these characteristics develop during the aging process.
8 point
View answer
Answer
Fino undergoes biological aging, which protects it from oxidation, maintaining its pale lemon color. The activity of flor yeast produces acetaldehyde, which gives Fino its distinctive bread-like aroma.
Oloroso undergoes oxidative aging, where interaction with oxygen darkens its color to brown and develops tertiary aromas of leather and walnut.
Grading Criteria
Fino
For stating that Fino undergoes biological aging, you get 1 point.
For explaining that biological aging limits oxygen exposure, you get 1 point.
For concluding that limited oxygen exposure maintains a pale lemon color, you get 1 point.
For stating that flor yeast activity produces acetaldehyde, you get 1 point.
For concluding that acetaldehyde is responsible for Fino’s bread-like aroma, you get 1 point.
Oloroso
For stating that Oloroso undergoes oxidative aging, you get 1 point.
For explaining that oxidation darkens the wine to a brown color, you get 1 point.
For explaining that oxidation develops tertiary aromas such as leather and walnut, you get 1 point.
Part 2
At what stage, and how, are Fino and Oloroso wines classified?
3 point
View answer
Answer
Fino and Oloroso are classified after alcoholic fermentation but before fortification, based on the aromatic characteristics of the wine.
Grading Criteria
For identifying that classification occurs “after alcoholic fermentation,” you get 1 point.
For identifying that classification occurs “before fortification,” you get 1 point.
For explaining that wines are classified based on their aromatic characteristics, you get 1 point.
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