WSET Level 1 Award in Wines

The WSET Level 1 Award in Wines is the entry-level wine qualification from the Wine & Spirit Education Trust (WSET). It introduces the main types and styles of wine, common grape varieties and their characteristics, how to store and serve wine, the principles of food and wine pairing, and how to describe a wine using WSET’s Level 1 Systematic Approach to Tasting. That makes it a sensible first wine course for green stews and interior crew who are new to wine service. WSET awards are voluntary professional qualifications: the certificates a yacht job actually requires are STCW Basic Safety Training and a seafarer medical such as the ENG1.

How the online course works

WSET’s online courses have fixed start and finish dates but no live log-on times, so you study when your rota allows. WSET School London runs four weeks of self-guided study with a dedicated online tutor and one year of access to WSET’s Online Classroom; wines are not included and the school recommends tasting at least six. Florida Wine Academy runs a four-week, six-module programme that it says takes about six hours in total plus revision. The Wandering Wine School runs a four-week online course and describes Level 1 as suited to green stews with little knowledge of wine.

The exam

For Level 1 and Level 2 in English, WSET allows the exam to be taken online by remote invigilation. Florida Wine Academy describes it as a closed-book exam of 30 multiple-choice questions in 45 minutes, with 70% needed to pass, sat at a computer and monitored by webcam, screen sharing and a phone as a second recording device. The Wandering Wine School says its remote exam can be taken in a spare room or cabin with good internet, booked at least 8 business days ahead. WSET School London says online exams are not possible for students in Mainland China or the UAE, worth knowing for crew based in Dubai.

Prices

Published prices for the online Level 1 are £210 at WSET School London, $300 at Florida Wine Academy and £220 at The Wandering Wine School, and all three say the exam is included. The Wandering Wine School had no upcoming online dates published when checked. The usual next step is WSET Level 2; WSET Level 3 needs an in-person exam.

For interior crew: see the interior career pathway, interior and stewardess training and the wider wine, food and beverage courses in the directory. Facts on this page come from each school’s own website and from wsetglobal.com, read on 21 October 2026.