So, as wine lovers, I want to share a little about my experience of taking the WSET Level 1 course (WSET stands for Wine and Spirits Education Trust).

Let me start saying, I don’t work in the wine business, and Level 1 was more than enough for now. You can actually skip straight to Level 2 without doing Level 1, but it’s much more expensive and time-intensive. Along the way, I met a lot of people here in Amsterdam who also did the course, and everyone seemed to have a really positive experience with it.

I did the course here in Amsterdam—it cost about €310 and included two tasting sessions with around 10 wines, plus some food pairings. Honestly, the tastings were so much fun, but what I really enjoyed most was learning how to recognize the types of wine I love (and the ones I don’t). It was one of the best decisions I’ve made as a wine enthusiast because it opened up a whole new world of flavors and pairings for me.

Something funny I’ve noticed since getting the certificate: people sometimes assume it means I’m a sommelier. Not true! WSET is more about understanding how wine is made, the styles of wine, and pairing basics. To become a sommelier, you need a different, more specialized course that goes deeper into service, brands, and detailed food pairing.

A few small but useful tips I picked up from the course:

• White wine can be paired with red meat—it’s not a strict rule.
• If someone enjoys their wine with any type of food, just let them enjoy it. No need to convince them it’s “wrong.”
• Store wine somewhere dark and cool.
• You don’t need a fancy set of glasses—one good glass works for white, rosé, and red.

There’s obviously a lot more, but those are the little gems I’ve already started using.

I’d love to know—have you ever taken a wine course, or do you have a wine experience that really stayed with you?