Spirits course

What are spirits and why are they closely associated with wines? How are they made and what are the distillation methods? How do you taste them properly and what are they produced from?

If you are not only interested in quality in wines but also in pálinka, liqueur, brandy and other spirits, and you’d like to know how they are made, what aromas characterise them and what makes a spirit truly outstanding, then the WSET Level 2 Spirits course is for you.

This course is designed to do all three things. If you are interested in spirits (and wines), you can explore the world of spirits and liqueurs at beginner and intermediate levels. You will learn about the production methods and characteristics of the main types of spirits as well as discovering the biggest brands and learning how to use spirits to make cocktails.

The course concludes with an exam. Participants achieving success in the exam will receive a WSET certificate and pin, and may also use the appropriate logo. If you have never heard of WSET, then click here.

Presenter: Attila Petzold

What is the course about?

What types of spirits are there?
Which are grape-based spirits?
Which are fruit-based spirits?
Which are grain and other starch-based spirits?
Which are flavoured spirits?
How do production methods affect the characteristics of spirits and liqueurs?
What are the characteristics of the main internationally available spirits and liqueurs?
How do you taste spirits?
The relationship between spirits and cocktail making
What are the most important cocktail ingredients?
What are the essential ingredients for making a cocktail? What tools do bartenders need?
We’ll make cocktails from the most important spirits.

Spirits to be tasted

We will taste 34 spirits during the course. Based on the WSET categories, these are as follows:

VS Cognac
VSOP Cognac
XO Cognac
Armagnac
Grappa
Pisco
Tennessee Whiskey (USA)
Bourbon (USA)
Rye Whiskey (USA)
Single Malt Whisky (Scotland)
Blended Scotch Whisky
Irish Whiskey
Japanese Whisky
Cuban style white rum
Characterful white rum (English or French)
Inexpensive, coloured, dark rum (BOB)
Matured Spanish style rum
Matured English style rum
Blanco Tequila (100% agave)
Reposado Tequila (100% agave)
Anejo Tequila (100% agave)
Blanco Artisanal Mezcal
Neutral style vodka
Characterful vodka
London Dry Gin
Modern style gin
Old Tom gin
Anise flavoured spirit
Bitters
Vermouth
Simple liqueur
Complex liqueur

We reserve the right to change the selection of spirits that will be tasted.

For whom is the spirits course recommended?

those who are already involved with wine who would like to broaden their knowledge,
those who work with wine and alcoholic beverages,
sommeliers and those working in HoReCa,
those working in the wine trade,
those interested in gastronomy,
middle and senior managers.

There are no admission requirements for the course, and you do not need any prior knowledge. You simply need to prove you are over 18 years old. Upon request, you may receive an exemption from this; however, in this case, any student under 18 years old may not participate in the spirits tasting during the course.

Course materials

In addition to the presentations shown during the course, the course textbook is the book ’WSET Spirits: Looking behind the label. The course fee includes the price of the course materials and a one-time exam fee.

Downloadable course materials:

Topics

The training takes place as an evening course with six four-hour sessions. The course is in English with some Hungarian additions. If you are not confident about your language skills, we recommend you contact us beforehand on the following telephone number: +36 70 622 1060

Exam

Succeeding in the exam requires additional individual self-study as well as the course sessions. You can see the textbook in the “Syllabus” section.

The price of the exam is included in the tuition fee. It consists of 50 multiple-choice questions which will cover the entire syllabus.

Application deadline: 20 working days before the selected date.

If you do not pass the exam, you may resit it. The fee for this is 35.000 HUF.

Participants achieving success in exam will receive a WSET certificate and pin, and may also use the appropriate WSET logo.

Dates and course fee

Kedvezményes ár: 150.000 HUF (118.110 Ft + ÁFA), amennyiben a tanfolyam kezdete előtt 15 naptári nappal megtörténik a befizetés, illetve megérkezik az átutalás az iskola bankszámlájára.
Teljes ár: 170.000 HUF (133.858 Ft + ÁFA), amennyiben a tanfolyam kezdetétől 15 napon belül történik a befizetés.

Jelenleg nincs induló kurzus, az időpontok feltöltés alatt vannak. Felmerülő kérdés esetén forduljon ügyfélszolgálatunkhoz a +36 70 622 1060 telefonszámon.

Why choose Borkollégium?

Borkollégium

We were the country’s first wine school, thus have the most experience.

You will not only taste a wide range of wines, but wines of extremely high quality.
Should a wine seem flawed, it will be replaced.

We make learning easy, with a pleasant environment and comfortable atmosphere.

Our educators work to the highest of standards.

We are the only school in Hungary to offer students constantly updated textbooks, right from the very beginning.

You will get answers to all your questions. However, if our educators, very occasionally, can’t give you an answer right away, they’ll come back to you with it the next day.

Knowledge-based education is of paramount importance to us, and we aim to offer our students the best knowledge available.

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WSET courses in English