Last fall, I took the Society of Wine Educators’ Certified Wine Educator (CWE) exam. I was successful on the theory (multiple choice and essay) and fault identification portions, but did not pass the varietal identification. This section of the exam presents the participant with eight glasses of wine (4 white and 4 red) along with a list of 10 wines. The participant must correctly match the 8 wines from the listing.

In order to complete the exam and earn the CWE credential, I must re-take the varietal identification and achieving a passing score, correctly matching a minimum of 6 wines. I had planned to re-take the exam when it was offered in Providence, RI last spring, but did not feel confident about passing. In the two months leading up to the April exam date, I began to blindly taste wines in flights, trying to guess the identity of each wine.

Now, I have my sights set on the October 16 administration of the exam in Washington, DC. As the date quickly approaches, I am once again tasting blind in flights. Last week I opened four reds — CA Cabernet Sauvignon, Navarra DO, Beaujolais and a Bordeaux. I successfully identified each wine.

Last night, I opened five whites — German Riesling, CA Viognier, WA Gewurztraminer, SA Chenin Blanc and a Vouvray (off-dry). I did well, but managed to confuse the Gewurztraminer with the Viognier as I did not expect the Gewurztraminer to be off-dry. Apparently, I didn’t do a great job with wine selection for my flights.

Over the next several weeks, I have several other flights to blind taste. I also plan to break out the Le Nez du Vin to strengthen my aroma identification skills. Time is running out, so I need to stay focused in the weeks ahead if I want to be successful at the exam. If nothing else, it can get expensive to continually re-take it.