WSET Level 2 Award in Wine | In-Person

Ready to Go Beyond the Basics?

You know your way around a wine list, but you’re ready for more. You want to understand why wines taste the way they do—and how to tell a great one from a good one.

Imagine tasting through over 30 wines from around the world, learning to identify regions, grape varieties, and styles with clarity. You can decode labels, recognize quality, and speak with genuine confidence—whether at a dinner table or in a professional setting.

The WSET Level 2 Award in Wines at Napa Valley Wine Academy takes you deeper into the world’s wine regions and styles. You’ll explore grape varieties, sparkling and fortified wines, and learn the WSET’s Systematic Approach to Tasting (SAT) alongside our expert instructors.

With a decade of experience helping students succeed, we’ve built a hands-on, engaging course filled with tastings, group activities, mock exams, and dedicated instructor support.

Join America’s most awarded wine school and take your knowledge—and confidence—to the next level.

What is Napa Valley Wine Academy’s WSET Level 2 pass rate?

Averaged across multiple years of exam sittings, 97% of Napa Valley Wine Academy students pass the WSET Level 2 Award in Wines. Across our WSET programmes overall, students pass at 99% at Level 1, 69.5% at Level 3 and 80% across the Level 4 Diploma.

WSET Level 2 course facts

• Price: $933, including the two-day in-person class, the online prep course, the WSET digital textbook and your exam registration
• Duration: a two-day in-person course plus an online prep course. WSET specifies a Total Qualification Time of 28 hours.
• Tastings: 30 wines tasted across the two days
• Exam format: 50 multiple-choice questions in 60 minutes. From 1 August 2026 the WSET Level 2 exam is offered in an online format only, with remote invigilation.
• Pass mark: 55%. Merit 70–84%, Distinction 85% or above.
• Prerequisite: none formally, though Level 2 assumes basic wine knowledge. Students starting from scratch should consider the WSET Level 1 Award in Wines. All students must be at least 21 years of age. Candidates sitting in English as a second language are advised by WSET to have IELTS 6.0 or above.
• Next step: the WSET Level 3 Award in Wines in person.

➡️ Download the Course Specification

➡️ View currently available online exam dates