FAQ
MW Practical Lab
What is MW Practical Lab?
MW Practical Lab is an ongoing online training programme focused entirely on the Master of Wine Practical examination.
It is designed to help students translate what they perceive in the glass into clear, evidence-led and defensible written answers — developing the reasoning, structure and confidence needed to turn tasting ability into marks.
What do I receive each month?
Each month includes:
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Two new Practical Labs
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One live online Practical Clinic
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A recording of the clinic if you cannot attend live
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Optional participation in a small peer Practical group
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Continued access to the Core Curriculum while your membership is active
What is a Practical Lab?
Each Practical Lab focuses on one specific Practical skill, question type or recurring challenge and contains three parts:
Learn
A short teaching video from Christine explaining the concept and how to approach it.
Apply
A focused Practical exercise involving tasting, reasoning, answer construction or analysis.
Debrief
A video in which Christine works through the exercise herself, sharing her own conclusions and answer, the evidence she would use, alternative defensible approaches and where marks may be gained or lost.
Two new Labs are released each month.
Does the curriculum build from one Lab to the next?
Yes. The Core Curriculum is progressive.
It begins with fundamental skills such as evidence, conclusions and answer construction before moving into variety and origin, winemaking, quality and maturity, style and commercial positioning, comparative questions and exam performance.
Can I join after the programme has started?
Yes.
Everyone starts the Core Curriculum from the beginning, regardless of when they join. If you join later in the academic year, you can work through earlier Labs at your own pace while also taking part in the current live Practical Clinics and peer activities.
What happens in the monthly Live Practical Clinic?
The clinic is an online session with Christine lasting approximately one hour.
It builds on the Practical skills being covered in the programme and provides an opportunity to discuss common challenges, questions and approaches in greater depth.
Christine will also select a small number of submitted answers to review anonymously, highlighting what works, where marks may be lost and how the answer could be improved.
What if I can't attend the live clinic?
All clinics are recorded and made available to current members afterwards.
The timing of each clinic will be confirmed in advance.
Will Christine personally mark my answers?
Individual marking is not included as part of the monthly membership.
You receive Christine's detailed video debriefs, selected anonymous answer reviews during the live clinics and the opportunity to exchange structured feedback within your peer group.
Individual Practical feedback can be purchased separately.
How do the peer Practical groups work?
Students who opt in will be placed into small groups of approximately three to four students.
The groups are designed to provide a manageable way to exchange answers, compare approaches, discuss difficult calls and give one another structured feedback.
A peer-review framework will be provided so that feedback remains focused on evidence, reasoning, conclusions, clarity and marks.
Participation is optional.
Do I need wine for every Practical Lab?
No.
Some exercises will involve tasting, while others will focus on reasoning, written answers, evidence or examination technique.
Where wine is required, guidance will be provided in advance.
Is MW Practical Lab suitable for Stage 1 and Stage 2 students?
Yes.
The underlying skills — interpreting evidence, reaching conclusions, structuring answers and communicating reasoning effectively — are relevant to both Stage 1 and Stage 2 candidates.
Exercises can be approached at the level appropriate to your current stage.
Does the programme include Theory?
No. MW Practical Lab is focused entirely on Practical.
How much does membership cost?
Membership is £100 per month, with an initial minimum commitment of three months.
After the initial three months, membership continues monthly.
Access to the programme and its materials remains available while your membership is active.
Are in-person Masterclass included?
No. In-person Practical Masterclasses are separate stand-alone courses and are booked separately.
MW Practical Masterclass — London
When is the next Masterclass?
Friday 20 and Saturday 21 November 2026
10:00–15:30 each day
Address:
Institute of Masters of Wine
6 Riverlight Quay, Kirtling St, Nine Elms, London SW11 8EA
Full details will be sent to confirmed participants.
Is this the same as MW Practical Lab?
No.
The Masterclass is a completely separate in-person, two-day course. You do not need to be a member of MW Practical Lab to attend.
Do I need to attend both days?
Yes.
The Masterclass has been designed as a two-day programme, with Day Two building directly on the techniques and concepts developed on Day One. It is therefore not available as individual single-day bookings.
How many wines will we taste?
There will be 12 blind wines each day. 24 wines across the two-day Masterclass.
Is it a two-day Mock Exam?
No - deliberately.
The focus is on teaching and improving specific Practical skills, rather than simply sitting two full mock papers.
We will introduce a concept or question type, explore how to approach it, and then test that approach against blind wines under timed conditions.
The format moves between:
Teaching → Blind tasting → Timed answer → Discussion and debrief
What will the Masterclass cover?
Topics will include:
Approaching different Practical question types
Identifying where the marks are
Selecting relevant evidence
Variety and origin
Winemaking
Quality and maturity
Style and commercial positioning
Comparative questions
Writing confidently
Picking up marks when an identification is incorrect
Timing and writing under pressure
Who is the Masterclass for?
The course is designed for current Master of Wine students preparing for the Practical examination.
The emphasis is on developing the reasoning and written-answer skills needed for the examination rather than simply improving blind identification.
What makes this different from simply doing more blind tasting?
Many MW students are already capable tasters.
The Masterclass concentrates on the next step: what you do with the information once you have tasted the wine.
The aim is to improve how you select evidence, make decisions, build arguments and communicate those conclusions on the page.
Who teaches the course?
The Masterclass is led by Christine Marsiglio MW, who became a Master of Wine in 2019 and received the Bollinger Medal for excellence in the MW Practical examination
Is individual marking included?
No.
The course includes extensive live discussion, timed answer work and feedback throughout the two days.
Separate individual Practical marking outside the Masterclass is available as an additional service.
Is accommodation and transportation included?
No.
Students travelling to London are responsible for arranging their own travel and accommodation.
Is Glassware included?
Yes, if needed, Riedel glasses can be provided at no extra charge.