My WSET Wine Journey…Part One…The Early Years…
05/18/2025
Lisa C. Rutt, DipWSET, CSW, WSET Certified Educator
My WSET Wine Journey… Part One…The Early Years…
Once upon a time…(the year 2004…to be exact), I was a busy mom of four little boys, and a flight attendant. I was not a wine drinker. One day, working as a flight attendant in first class, a passenger ordered a glass of wine, a Sauvignon Blanc, to be exact…I had no idea what that was! I didn’t know if he was asking for a white or red wine! The passenger said, “If you’re going to serve wine, you should at least know something about it” (with a shake of his head and a big eye roll…) I thought about it and I thought, “He’s right!” I had been pregnant or breast feeding for the past eight years, and for the first time, in a very long time, my body was my own! I wanted to learn about wine!
The next day, I took my four boys to the bookstore, and bought “Wine for Dummies” by Mary Ewing Mulligan. (Little did I know, but one day her brother, Neal Ewing would be my wine instructor!)
My wine journey had begun!
Over the next few years I read every book about wine that I could get my hands on.
Fast forward to the year 2015. I discovered the movie, “Somm” (Wise, 2012). “Somm” is a movie about a group of aspiring Master Sommeliers, through the Court of Master’s Sommeliers. This movie introduced me to the concept of blind tasting wine! “This is a thing?” And for the first time, I found out that there were certifications in wine! I thought…”I need a certification in wine! I don’t want to be just a Wino-O, I want to be a certified Wino-O!” In that moment, my life would be changed forever!
The first night I watched the movie I said, “There’s no way…this is fake.”
The second night I watched the movie again…I was intrigued…I thought, “Wow. This is the coolest thing, ever!”
The third night I watched the movie, I looked at my husband and I said, “I’m going to be one of them!” He said, “Yeah, right.”
It took me a year of research, until I found a way that I could do it. I lived hours from any big city, in the heart of amish country. I had four boys in school, and I worked part time as a flight attendant. I did not have a lot of free time, but I was determined to find a way to do achieve my goal.
I first researched the Court of Masters Sommeliers. I learned they are a testing agency. They do not offer classes. To take their test, I’d have to fly to a city when they were offering the test. Not a big deal for a flight attendant, but how was I going to learn what I need to know to pass a test?
I continued to do research on certifications in wine. One day, I discovered Wine and Spirits Education Trust (WSET). What made them different from any other certification in Wine, was that they offered classes that teach you what you need to know, to pass the test! I knew I needed to take a class, to be prepared to take a test. WSET was the way to go, for me.
Through the WSETglobal.com website, I found PhillyWine, located in Philadelphia. I was ecstatic to find that they offered “home study” classes. I could watch the classes live or recorded. This was perfect for me. When my work schedule didn’t permit me to be at home or when I had the kid’s activities, I could watch the classes at my convenience. I wanted to start at Level 1, but there were no Level 1 classes being offered until the next spring, (almost a year away), so I jumped in at Level 2.
I received my book and I immediately read it from cover to cover! I still remember thinking, Burgundy wine is only Chardonnay or Pinot Noir grapes??? Chablis on the bottle means it is only Chardonnay grapes? Australia makes high quality wine? I always thought Australian wine was only “Yellow Tail?” I absolutely loved my WSET Level 2 class.
Soon, it was test day! I took the train to Philadelphia and took my first test in wine. Six weeks later, I received my results!
I PASSED WITH DISTINCTION!
I was hooked!
I immediately signed up for PhillyWine’s next WSET Level 3 class.
I loved watching my weekly WSET classes, but as I watched the class on my computer, I always felt a little sad. The classes looked like so much fun! As a group, the class was tasting and discussing the wines, leaning from each other, and building friendships with people who had a shared interest…while I sat on my couch alone, watching them…I always felt that I was missing out on so much, by taking my classes remotely.
The day of my Level 3 test came. First, I took the theory test. It was much more difficult than I expected.
Next, I took my first tasting exam of two wines, blind. I had to identify one white wine and one red wine. (You no longer have to identify the wines, at Level 3).
I was sure I failed. Three months later, I got my results.
I PASSED!!!
No Distinction. No Merit. But I passed.
Did I have what it takes to keep going to Level Four?
I said…”I’m going to keep going until I fail!”
Stay tuned…for the failures…in Part 2!
Cheers!
Lisa