MS Theory — New World Wine Regions

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New World wine regions — defined broadly as wine-producing countries outside Europe and the Middle East — present the MS candidate with the challenge of studying developing classification systems, diverse climates, and young wine cultures that have evolved rapidly since the 1960s and 1970s. The key insight for New World study: quality is increasingly site-specific rather than producer-driven, and the best producers in each region have identified their great terroirs through 30–50 years of observation. The MS exam expects this terroir-level knowledge for California, Oregon, and Washington at minimum, with less granular but still substantive knowledge of Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Argentina, and Chile. New World wines in the MS practical tasting exam are characterised by: higher alcohol levels (typically 13.5–15.5%), riper fruit (black and tropical rather than red and green), less earth and mineral, and more prominent new oak in premium expressions. At Master level, the candidate must identify not just 'New World Cabernet Sauvignon' but distinguish Napa Valley Cabernet from Margaret River Cabernet from Coonawarra Cabernet — each has a structural and aromatic fingerprint.

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