Napa Valley Wine Academy Claimed

Founded in 2012, Napa Valley Wine Academy is a good option if you are looking to take a wine class/course/ in the heart of the most famous California wine region. They offer Awards in Wine Courses; Online, 1-Day Virtual, Napa, Tampa, Nashville, Santa Barbara, Costa Mesa and Denver. If you are looking to expand your curriculum, they also have a WSET Beer Certification. It’s important to highlight their Wine Trips Abroad to Rhone, Argentina, Piemonte, Burgundy and fun Excursions in Napa Valley.

I was fortunate enough to attend NVWA’s Harvest Bootcamp last year as part of the Level 3 certification course and I can’t say enough good things about it. Where do I start? First, the instructors were top-notch. We learned from Masters of Wine, WSET Diploma holders with industry experience and master winemakers in both video lectures and in person. But it didn’t stop there. We also took several field trips and learned from growers, winery operations directors, a virtual winemaker who gave us hands on experience at a crush pad, all topped off with a winemaker’s dinner (definitely the highlight of the whole experience). The in-person lectures and tastings were world-class but never stuffy or dry. Brought in lunches were an opportunity to socialize with classmates, and included a “guess today’s wine” challenge that facilitated camaraderie and additional learning (that oaked white had to be a Chardonnay!). They also made sure we had snacks and coffee to keep our energy up later in the day. Level 3 covers a lot of ground – viticulture, varietals and winemaking in all the major wine producing regions of the world, as well as the major wine styles (sparkling, still & fortified). The instructors really (really) cared that we were actually learning and assimilating the material by discussing similarities and differences between wine regions and varietals and by helping us identify signature aromas and flavors, always making sure we were all calibrating and identifying the same things. Second, where NVWA really excelled (for me at least) was with exam preparation. Video lectures to be completed before Bootcamp included maps, and there were short quizzes and longer multiple-choice exams to test knowledge along the way – a very valuable tool when reviewing for the exam. They also provided mock exams with sample scoring rubrics which I found to be the single most valuable resource. Instructors emphasized from the beginning that the Level 3 theory and blind tasting exams under timed conditions would be very, very challenging and that meant practicing under timed conditions was critical to getting up to staying in exam mode. They even had electronic flash cards. I passed Level 3 with distinction, and I owe it to NVWA’S conscientious approach to instruction prior to and during the Harvest Bootcamp experience. Finally, I made some friends that I keep in touch with almost a year later! I’m mid-way through Level 4 Diploma now and the knowledge base I brought with me from NVWA’s Level 3 has proven to be invaluable.

I could not have passed it without the class. The staff was very knowledgeable and accommodating. The fact that it was a harvest bootcamp made it even better. All of the “field trips” were great and the winemaker dinner was the best. Ilearned more than I ever imagined. Although there were long days you made it fun and rewarding. Thank you so much for all of your efforts and passion for what you do. It translates into a wonderful experience and success for all.

Their is no better WSET program period.

Thank you soooo much for the wonderful job you and the team did teaching and preparing me for the WSET Level 3 exam! Everything about the program was great! For someone not entrenched in the wine industry professionally, I especially appreciated the field trips with the hands-on experience that helped to make “real” everything I was learning in the classroom and the book. The class size was just large enough that there was dynamic interaction between the group, but not so many as to make it overwhelming or impersonal. Lunches with “guess the wine” was fun and the food was delicious! I am looking forward to my journey into Diploma with NVWA!!

Napa Wine Academy is the best wine school on the west coast, possibly the entire country.

SOMM calls this one of the top wine schools in America. The Napa Wine Academy itself says it’s the best wine school. But is it? I found it’s marketing very slick, but I don’t think it’s the best possible education. ICC (now closed) and NWS are far better. I’d expect deeper programming and less reliance on off-the-shelf programming –No one needs another generic WSET class.– from a top tier wine school.

There should be more than reading from a text book. Where’s the passion?

I took a class last summer at the Napa Wine Academy, and it was stellar. I highly recommend this school!