Level 3 wine exam practice · Learning outcome 4
Fortified wines: practice questions
60 original multiple-choice questions on this chapter, each with an explanation. Five are below; the rest, plus timed mocks and written-answer drills with mark schemes, are in the app.
Sample questions
A customer wants a bone-dry, light, tangy aperitif wine to serve well chilled with olives and almonds. Which Sherry fits?
- A Fino or Manzanilla
- A Cream Sherry
- A Pedro Ximénez
- A sweet Oloroso
Answer: A Fino or Manzanilla. Fino and Manzanilla are the driest, lightest Sherries, with the saline, yeasty freshness that salty snacks call for, and they should be served cold and drunk young. The other three are sweet.
Which climatic features shape Sherry production?
- A hot, sunny climate moderated by the Atlantic, with the humid Poniente wind off the sea helping flor to grow and the hot, dry Levante wind from inland drying and ripening the grapes
- A cool continental climate with frequent frost
- A wet maritime climate with rain throughout the summer
- A desert climate with no wind
Answer: A hot, sunny climate moderated by the Atlantic, with the humid Poniente wind off the sea helping flor to grow and the hot, dry Levante wind from inland drying and ripening the grapes. Jerez is hot but not far from the ocean, and the two winds pull in opposite directions: the Poniente keeps the cellars humid enough for the yeast film, the Levante bakes the vineyards and can shrivel grapes on the vine. Bodegas are oriented to catch the sea breeze.
A customer wants a sweet, fresh, aromatic fortified wine to serve chilled with a fruit-based dessert. Which fits best?
- Muscat de Beaumes-de-Venise
- A dry Oloroso
- A Rutherglen Muscat
- A Vintage Port
Answer: Muscat de Beaumes-de-Venise. Beaumes-de-Venise's grapey, floral freshness and moderate sweetness suit fruit desserts and chilling. Oloroso is dry, Rutherglen Muscat is far heavier and better with rich puddings or cheese, and Vintage Port is a red wine for cheese and the end of the meal.
What is the fundamental difference between a Ruby and a Tawny style of Port?
- Ruby styles are aged for a short time in large vessels or inert containers to keep their colour and fresh fruit; Tawny styles are aged for long periods in small wooden casks, becoming oxidised, paler and nutty
- Ruby is made from red grapes and Tawny from white grapes
- Ruby is fortified and Tawny is not
- Ruby is sweet and Tawny is dry
Answer: Ruby styles are aged for a short time in large vessels or inert containers to keep their colour and fresh fruit; Tawny styles are aged for long periods in small wooden casks, becoming oxidised, paler and nutty. All Port is fortified and sweet and almost all is from black grapes; the style is set in the cellar. Protect the wine from oxygen and it stays ruby, fruity and firm; leave it in oak for years and it turns tawny, with dried fruit, caramel and nuts.
What does an age statement such as '10 Years Old' on a Tawny Port indicate?
- The average character of a blend of cask-aged wines judged to match that age, not the age of every component
- That every drop of wine is exactly that age
- The number of years the wine will keep after opening
- The number of years since the vineyard was planted
Answer: The average character of a blend of cask-aged wines judged to match that age, not the age of every component. Aged Tawnies are blends drawn from casks of different ages to achieve a house style the authorities approve as typical of the stated age; the number is a style indication rather than a guarantee of minimum age for each part. The styles run from ten to forty years and beyond.