Tomorrow through Friday I will be sitting the Master of Wine exam for the last time. I’m so excited for the exam in the morning but also I will miss the intense preparation a bit. Starting Saturday I will begin a life with no intensive structured studies. That is a life which I have experienced only for short periods. I suppose I ended up being a perpetual student anyway even though that is what I swore off once I graduated college in 2006. However in June of 2007 I signed up for my first WSET course and have been slowly acquiring certifications ever since with the ultimate goal of achieving the MW. I suppose it really is the process of learning I enjoy as well as the pursuit of a goal.

Thinking to tomorrow, I wonder what the examiners have set up for us? Classics? The hot new world area taking London by storm? Avant garde new production techniques? Small production obscure Italian varieties? All are possible but many are not probable. Probability points to classics. Standards which have been set over time. Chardonnay, Cabernet, and others however there are always surprises and that is what makes this fun. Did I just say that this is fun? Yes it is! This year I have found the fun in the practical exam. That is how I know I’m going to pass this year. If is because I know that whatever they set out for me tomorrow and Thursday and Friday, I am prepared to answer it. It’s a good feeling.

Now I’m going to go grab some pizza with a friend, maybe a beer, relax, do some last minute vintage studying before bed and wake up ready for the experience. Research Paper, here I come!