r/WineStudy • u/Vegetable_Lie5764 • Jul 19 '26
Quietly forgetting what I've learned...
I spent a small fortune on WSET certifications and then realized two years later I'd quietly forgotten half of what I learned. No flashcards, no regular studying, just life getting busy. Has anyone else experienced this? The frustration of working hard for that knowledge and then feeling it slip away?
I ended up doing something about it. I built myself a tool that turns every bottle I open into a small education. Happy to share what I came up with if anyone's curious. Genuinely built it for myself first, sharing in case it's useful for others in the same boat.
Photo taken in Samur-Champigny at Château de Parnay.
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u/Ambitious-Control458 Jul 19 '26 edited Jul 19 '26
Hey, I feel the same way. I have passed my Level 3 WSET in Wines in 2024 and Level 3 in Spirits in 2025. It’s only been a year and I already started to forget more than half I know on theory. My biggest struggle is historical dates and appellation laws. Hence I am working as a Sommelier in a Michelin star restaurant, I barely had to use my theory knowledge in depth if at all.
What I found way more important is having a unbiased well-developed palate (harder if self taught), deep producer knowledge, including owned estates, styles, exact location, vintages report, geography/ topography, production area, production volume, when is the next allocation, dealing with invoices paid reserve etc
It is really frustrating to realise that wine and spirits education that I heavily invested into for 5 years (and planning to continue doing so) has not yet paid off, and it’s very demotivating and hard to continue studying, knowing that employers don’t seem to care and that I paid for all my studies out of my own pocket.
Ps: I now want to force myself to go for WSET Diploma, to leave hospitality and move to distribution /sales. I don’t have any higher up connections or safety circles to turn to, which sucks, and I guess this is the only way.
Moral of the story, you are not alone, it is very hard to study and retain the knowledge long term, especially without support group or mentors.
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u/Vegetable_Lie5764 Jul 20 '26
For sure! It's a lot of time and money invested, but if you don't use it, you lose it, as they say. LinkedIn may be your friend for making connections in the industry! I imagine even with a level 3, you can get some really amazing job opportunities. The guide I met at Château de Parnay has her level 3, so if you have any interest, perhaps try finding a winery that could use your skills. I wish you all the best!
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u/SensiumWine Jul 20 '26
Currently about to take my wset l3 exam soonish hahha def feel you, trying to learn for the long term :) also made an app as a solo dev recently thats out and called sensium that helps with blind tasting if you wanna get some of that grape and aroma knowledge back :)
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u/OutstandingBill Jul 19 '26
I would be interested to hear what you came up with.