Mock Test
1. Which one of the following statements is
true of Pinot Noir?
a) It is only used to make inexpensive,
low-quality wines
b) It typically has a deep colour and high
levels of tannin
c) Typical flavours include tropical fruit and
citrus
d) It is at its best when grown in cool or
moderate climates
2. Which one of the following grape
varieties is widely grown in South Africa?
a) Gewurztraminer
b) Glera
c) Semillon
d) Chenin Blanc
3. A wine labelled as Pinot Grigio delle
Venezie DOC is typically described as
a) sweet, full-bodied and complex
b) dry, light-bodied and simple
c) medium, full-bodied and complex
d) sweet, light-bodied and simple
4. What are the ideal conditions for
botrytis/noble rot to grow?
a) Cool nights and warm, dry mornings
b) Warm, dry mornings and damp, misty
afternoons
c) Damp, misty mornings and rainy
afternoons
d) Damp, misty mornings and warm, dry
afternoons
5. Which of the following wine regions are
both well known for outstanding-quality
wines from the Cabernet Sauvignon grape?
a) Rhône Valley and Napa Valley
b) Stellenbosch and Margaret River
c) Barolo and Los Carneros
d) Burgundy and Coonawarra
6. Amarone della Valpolicella DOCG is
made from which grape variety?
a) Corvina
b) Barbera
c) Nebbiolo
d) Verdicchio
7. Which one of the following is a French
labelling term used to indicate a wine with
a protected designation of origin (PDO)?
a) Appellation d'origine contrôlée
b) Qualitätswein
c) Denominazione di Origine Controllata
d) Indication géographique protégée
8. Which of the following techniques are
used to produce sweet wines?
1. Juice is extracted from grapes with high
levels of concentrated sugar
2. Yeast is removed after fermentation has
completed
3. A dry wine is blended with a sweet wine
a) 1 and 2 only
b) 1 and 3 only
c) 2 and 3 only
d) 1, 2 and 3
9. Which of the following pairs of wines
should be well chilled before serving?
a) Sauternes and Tokaji Aszú
b) Champagne and Beaujolais
c) Shiraz and oaked Chardonnay
d) Prosecco and Cabernet Sauvignon
10. Some red wines can age well for several
years because they have
a) high tannins, low alcohol and low acidity
b) low tannins, high alcohol and low acidity
c) low tannins, concentrated fruit and low
acidity
d) high tannins, concentrated fruit and high
acidity
11. A red wine with high tannins, high 15. Which of the following grape varieties
acidity and black-fruit, cedar and tobacco are commonly grown in Alsace?
characteristics best describes 1. Pinot Gris
a) Meursault 2. Chardonnay
b) Margaux 3. Riesling
c) Beaune 4. Sémillon
d) Beaujolais
a) 1 and 2 only
12. Which of the following describes ideal
b) 1 and 3 only
storage conditions for wine sealed with a
c) 2 and 4 only
cork?
d) 3 and 4 only
a) The temperature should be warm
b) The temperature should be cool and 16. What does the pulp of a grape mainly
constant contain?
c) The bottle should be stored vertically a) Tannins and sugar
d) The storage area should be in strong b) Water and sugar
bright light c) Acid and tannins
d) Sugar and yeast
13. Youthful Sauvignon Blanc wines have
flavours of 17. Which one of the following has a
a) lemon, honey and nuts reputation for premium quality Pinot Noir?
b) grass, grapefruit and passion fruit a) Montepulciano
c) dried apricot, coconut and biscuit b) Navarra
d) candy, mint and butter c) Oregon
d) Mendoza
14. Which one of the following statements
is true? 18. Which grape variety is used to make
a) Very good or outstanding wines can Beaujolais?
only be made from hand-harvested grapes a) Glera
b) Very good or outstanding wines can b) Gamay
only be made from machine-harvested c) Grenache
grapes d) Garganega
c) Very good or outstanding wines can be
made from both hand- and machine-
harvested grapes
d) Very good or outstanding wines cannot
be made from machine-harvested grapes
Questions 19–21 relate to a description of a 25. A Barossa Valley Shiraz wine is
young Pouilly-Fumé. typically
a) full-bodied with black-cherry, vanilla and
19. Appearance
coffee characteristics
a) Deep amber
b) light-bodied with strawberry, leather and
b) Pale lemon
wet-leaf characteristics
c) Deep gold
c) full-bodied with pineapple, butter and
d) Pale amber
honey characteristics
20. Nose d) light-bodied with black-cherry, butter
a) Pronounced intensity of grass, and leather characteristics
asparagus, apple and wet stones
26. Which of the following best describes
b) Light intensity of apricot, honey, dried
how a vacuum system keeps a wine fresh?
fruit and nuts
a) A pump is used to add CO2 to a wine
c) Medium intensity of melon, butter,
b) Gas is pumped into the bottle to push
vanilla and smoke
out air
d) Medium intensity of passion fruit, vanilla
c) A pump removes air from the inside of
and coffee
bottle
21. Palate d) Gas is used to add fresh-fruit aromas to
a) Dry with low acidity wine
b) Medium sweetness with high acidity
27. In the Northern Rhône, the best
c) Dry with high acidity
vineyards are planted
d) Dry with medium acidity
a) on north-facing hillsides
22. Grand Cru Classé is a labelling term b) on flat valley floor
most associated with which wine region? c) close to the coast
a) Rhône d) on steep slopes
b) Bordeaux
28. What is the correct sequence of events
c) Barolo
for most red winemaking?
d) Loire
a) Crushing, pressing, alcoholic
23. Which of the following is a common fermentation
labelling term for Port? b) Crushing, alcoholic fermentation,
a) TBA pressing
b) DOC c) Pressing, alcoholic fermentation,
c) LBV crushing
d) PX d) Pressing, crushing, alcoholic
fermentation
24. Which one of the following is an Italian
black grape variety? 29. What term is used on an Italian wine
a) Verdicchio label to indicate that the grapes were
b) Cortese grown in the historic centre of the region?
c) Corvina a) Classico
d) Chardonnay b) Crianza
c) Riserva
d) Cortese
30. The flavours of autolysis are 37. Minervois AOC can be a blend of which
a) lemon and pineapple of the following grape varieties?
b) apple and cream a) Grenache and Syrah
c) biscuit and bread b) Syrah and Viognier
d) butter and cream c) Tempranillo and Garnacha
d) Syrah and Gamay
31. Pinotage is often blended with which of
the following varieties for a Cape Blend? 38. Which of the following can be used to
a) Chenin Blanc and Malbec add complexity to dry white wines?
b) Chenin Blanc and Merlot 1. Blending
c) Cabernet Sauvignon and Viognier 2. Malolactic conversion
d) Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot 3. Lees contact
4. Barrel fermentation
32. Australia has a reputation for very good
and outstanding-quality Riesling wines
a) 1 and 2 only
produced in
b) 2, 3 and 4 only
a) Hawke’s Bay
c) 1 and 4 only
b) Clare Valley
d) 1, 2, 3 and 4
c) Central Valley
d) Walker Bay 39. Which grape variety is used to make
Meursault?
33. A Crianza wine from Rioja has
a) Chardonnay
a) longer oak-ageing requirements than a
b) Cabernet Sauvignon
Reserva wine
c) Sauvignon Blanc
b) no oak-ageing requirements
d) Syrah
c) some oak flavours
d) only primary fruit flavours 40. Which of these wines would you
recommend for a customer or friend who
34. Sparkling Asti is made from
wishes to purchase a simple, fruity red
a) Glera
wine for immediate drinking?
b) Moscato (Muscat)
a) Tokaji Aszú
c) Chardonnay
b) Chianti Classico Riserva
d) Pinot Noir
c) Barolo
35. Which one of the following regions is d) Côtes du Rhône
known for powerful, full-bodied wines
41. In Champagne production,
made from Garnacha?
disgorgement is the process of
a) Priorat
a) blending still wines
b) Pommard
b) moving the lees towards the neck of the
c) Pomerol
bottle
d) Port
c) removing the lees from the bottle
36. ‘Sweet with flavours of almond and d) adding sugar and yeast to still wine
apple’ best describes a
a) Pale Cream Sherry
b) Vintage Port
c) Oloroso Sherry
d) Ruby Port
42. Which of the following grape varieties 48. Which one of the following regions has
are grown successfully in cool and a reputation for outstanding-quality
moderate climates? Chardonnay?
1. Merlot a) Burgundy
2. Pinot Noir b) Alsace
3. Riesling c) Bordeaux
4. Sauvignon Blanc d) Rías Baixas

49. When opening a bottle of sparkling

a) 1 and 2 only
wine, what can be done to make the
b) 2 and 3 only
process easier and safer?
c) 2, 3 and 4 only
1. Chill the wine
d) 1, 3 and 4 only
2. Hold the cork securely from the moment the
43. Which of the following grape varieties is wire cage is loosened
widely used in the production of rosé wines 3. Turn the bottle gently while holding the cork
in Spain?
a) Pinotage a) 1 only
b) Garnacha b) 1 and 3 only
c) Malbec c) 1 and 2 only
d) Carmenère d) 1, 2 and 3

44. The solera system is a method of 50. Sweet with high acidity, low alcohol and
a) adding sweetness to Port dried-apricot and honey characteristics
b) blending and ageing Sherry best describes
c) removing yeast from Champagne a) Pouilly-Fumé
d) drying grapes before fermentation b) Pouilly-Fuissé
c) Trockenbeerenauslese
45. Malbec is the most important grape in
d) Sauternes
a) Australia
b) Argentina
c) Chile
d) South Africa

46. In Bordeaux, very good and

outstanding dry white wines are usually
made from
a) Sauvignon Blanc and Chenin Blanc
b) Chardonnay and Sémillon
c) Chenin Blanc and Chardonnay
d) Sauvignon Blanc and Sémillon

47. In which season do flower clusters

form?
a) Summer
b) Spring
c) Winter
d) Autumn