Can You Name the Grape? A Blind Wine Tasting Quiz

Blind tasting is the most humbling — and addictive — skill in wine. Jesse passed his WSET Level 3 tasting component partly because he’d spent hundreds of hours tasting wines blind before the exam, and he’ll tell you that the ability to reason from what’s in the glass to what’s in the bottle is the closest thing wine has to a superpower.

This quiz simulates the blind tasting challenge in a different format: we give you the clues — the color, the aroma profile, the palate characteristics, the structure — and you identify the grape variety. No looking at the label. No hints beyond what a skilled taster would actually perceive.

It’s designed both for WSET students working toward the tasting component and for any wine lover who wants to sharpen their varietal recognition skills. You don’t need to be a sommelier to enjoy this — you just need to pay attention to what the wine is telling you. Take the quiz, see how many you can get, and scroll down for our blind tasting tips.

BONUS: CAN YOU NAME THE GRAPE? — BLIND TASTING QUIZ

A fun wine knowledge quiz to test your expertise. Not affiliated with WSET.

A wine shows aromas of blackcurrant, cedar, green bell pepper, and tobacco. It has full body, high tannins, and high acidity. What grape is it most likely? Merlot Pinot Noir Cabernet Sauvignon Grenache

A white wine shows aromas of green apple, citrus, wet stone, and chalk. It has high acidity, light body, and no oak influence. Which grape and region is most likely? Viognier from Condrieu Chardonnay from Chablis Chardonnay from Napa Valley Gewørztraminer from Alsace

A red wine has aromas of red cherry, strawberry, mushroom, and forest floor. It has light-to-medium body, light color, high acidity, and low tannin. Which grape? Cabernet Sauvignon Syrah Pinot Noir Tempranillo

A wine has intense aromas of lychee, rose petal, ginger, and Turkish delight. It has medium-to-full body and low acidity. Which grape? Riesling Sauvignon Blanc Muscat Gewørztraminer

A red wine shows dark plum, chocolate, black pepper, and licorice. It has full body, firm tannins, and moderate acidity. Which grape and region? Shiraz from the Barossa Valley Pinot Noir from Burgundy Gamay from Beaujolais Cabernet Franc from the Loire Valley

A white wine shows passion fruit, gooseberry, cut grass, and jalapeño. It has high acidity, light body, and no oak character. Which grape? Chardonnay Pinot Grigio Sauvignon Blanc Riesling

A red wine has aromas of sour cherry, dried herbs, leather, and tomato leaf. It has medium-to-full body, high acidity, and firm, drying tannins. Which grape? Merlot Pinot Noir Malbec Sangiovese

A wine shows lime, green apple, petrol/kerosene, and white flowers. It has high acidity, light body, and 10% alcohol. Which grape? Chardonnay Sauvignon Blanc Riesling Pinot Gris

A red wine shows ripe plum, dark chocolate, dried violet, and espresso. It has full body, velvety tannins, and 14.5% alcohol. Which grape and region? Cabernet Sauvignon from Bordeaux Pinot Noir from Oregon Malbec from Mendoza Gamay from Beaujolais

A white wine has aromas of apricot, peach, orange blossom, and honey. It has full body, low acidity, and 14% alcohol. Which grape? Sauvignon Blanc Riesling Viognier Albariño

A red wine shows dark fruit, smoked meat, black olive, and garrigue (wild herbs). It has full body, moderate tannin, and warmth on the finish. Which grape/blend? Grenache-based Southern Rhône blend (e.g., Châteauneuf-du-Pape) Cabernet Sauvignon from Napa Valley Nebbiolo from Barolo Merlot from Bordeaux

A wine shows tar, roses, dried cherry, and leather. It has very pale garnet color but extremely high tannin and high acidity. Which grape? Pinot Noir Grenache Sangiovese Nebbiolo

A white wine shows tropical fruit (pineapple, mango), vanilla, butter, and toast. It has full body, moderate acidity, and 13.5% alcohol. Which grape and style? Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand Riesling from Alsace Oaked Chardonnay from a warm climate (Napa, Sonoma, or Australian) Viognier from the Rhône

A red wine shows blackberry, white pepper, violet, and olive. It has medium-to-full body, firm tannins, and bright acidity. Which grape? Cabernet Sauvignon Malbec Syrah (Northern Rhône style) Tempranillo

A red wine shows plum, tobacco, vanilla, dried fig, and leather. It has medium body, soft tannins, and moderate acidity. Which grape and region? Cabernet Sauvignon from Bordeaux Tempranillo from Rioja (Reserva or Gran Reserva) Sangiovese from Chianti Nebbiolo from Barolo

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How to Improve Your Blind Tasting Skills

Blind tasting is a skill that develops with deliberate practice. Here’s how Jesse approaches training for it:

Learn each variety’s non-negotiable characteristics. Sauvignon Blanc’s herbaceous, high-acid freshness. Riesling’s petrol note and piercing acidity. Syrah’s dark fruit, black pepper, and meaty edge. Pinot Noir’s translucent color and red fruit lightness. Build your variety signatures one grape at a time.

Taste the same variety from different climates. Cool-climate Chardonnay from Chablis and warm-climate Chardonnay from Barossa taste remarkably different, but both have the same textural richness and body. Learning to recognize variety through climate variation is the real skill.

Use the elimination method. In a blind tasting, start with what you know it isn’t. High color saturation rules out Pinot Noir and Grenache. A pronounced herbaceous nose might point toward Sauvignon Blanc or Cabernet Franc. Narrowing the field systematically leads you to the right answer faster than guessing from scratch.

Taste regularly, even inexpensively. A $15 Argentinian Malbec will teach you the same Malbec signature as a $60 Cahors. Frequent, focused tasting with a notebook does more for your tasting skills than occasional expensive bottles.

For structured WSET exam preparation, visit our free WSET practice quiz hub.

Looking for structured WSET study materials? We recommend Napa Valley Wine Academy’s WSET courses — comprehensive video lessons and study notes that pair perfectly with these practice quizzes.