Firstleaf Review

Overview

Wine enthusiasts all have something in common, besides their love of wine, and that’s understanding the struggle that comes with finding and discovering new bottles that they will enjoy. Sure, you can read the back of the bottle for the intricate tasting notes, or google reviews to see what others like, but in the end it all comes down to your own palette and that can mean wasting money on something you hate over and over again just to eventually find one you love. Thankfully, you don’t need to pour your hand-earned money down the drain anymore, as Firstleaf is a monthly subscription service that delivers intelligently selected bottles directly to your doorstep.

Designed to help auto-select new and exciting wines that you will love, Firstleaf learns your likes and dislikes so that it can curate selections for you that are based around taste, type, and more. For less than you would typically spend per bottle at the store, Firstleaf makes trying new wines affordable and fun and their award-winning bottles get better and better the longer you stick with it. To learn more, read through this Firstleaf review and see why over 100,000 people turn to Firstleaf for their wine needs.

How Does it Work?

Getting started with Firstleaf is extremely simple, and it all begins with their initial wine preference quiz. An industry-leading design, this quiz will help narrow down exactly what you like to drink and will go a long way in providing you with great bottles month after month. The quiz itself only takes a few seconds to complete, but it is the foundation for creating your personalized profile for all future orders.

After you have finished the quiz, your first intro order will be shipped out to you and should arrive in only a few short days. This is your baseline box and you should think of it like a getting to know you welcome package. Contained within will be wines that you can later rate so that the algorithm can continue learning more about you and adapt your boxes going forward so that they better suit your tastes. 

Rating each bottle you receive is key, but thankfully it is extremely quick and easy to do. Simply go on the website and mark each wine with a thumbs up or thumbs down so that your next order contains options that are better suited to you. Although you may not be head over heels in love with every bottle you receive early on, Firstleaf does get better and better over time until eventually you will always be blown away by how amazing the wines are.

In addition to their monthly subscription service, Firstleaf also has wine available a la carte so that customers can shop on their own. Not only is this great for those who don’t feel like getting a delivery every month, but you can also use this feature to add on additional bottles to your subscription if you feel like having some extras. 

Wine Preference Quiz

What sets Firstleaf apart from other wine subscription services is the fact that they use a unique, patent-pending quiz that helps pair you up with the right wine for your tastebuds. Composed of 13 questions, the quiz utilizes a slider bar that lets you determine where exactly on each spectrum you fall. Firstleaf will want to know how sweet you like your wine, if you prefer reds or whites, how adventurous you are, and even what foods you like and dislike. 

After you answer the quiz, the system will analyze the answers you provided and curate a selection of 6 wines that it believes you will enjoy. Not only will you be shown the bottles, but you will also get a small write-up about each wine, including a bit about the winemakers and vineyards, as well as general tasting notes. 

If you aren’t sure about a certain bottle that has been recommended, you can easily swap it out before you order. By clicking on “Swap Out This Wine”, you will be taken to a screen that shows you a couple other suggestions based around your profile and you can select which one you want to have as a replacement.

Once you are settled on your initial 6 wines, simply continue onto the checkout process and provide your information so that you can begin your monthly subscription. Remember, each wine is guaranteed to be enjoyed by you, so if you aren’t happy with any of the 6 you receive, you can always contact Firstleaf directly to see about getting a replacement.

Product Line

Firstleaf is home to over 700 unique bottles of wine, and they are able to curate such a large collection because they work directly with wineries in order to bring the various bottles to the customers. Utilizing vineyards from across the globe, Firstleaf tends to go for bold and adventurous wines while also still selecting options that are typically enjoyed by most individuals. Not only are these global wines, but they are also award-winning selections that come from well-known wineries as well as their own bottles they make themselves. 

Since the collection from Firstleaf is so large it is unlikely that you will get the same bottle twice, but that doesn’t mean you can’t order a duplicate if you end up finding something you are in love with. Their online shop carries around 200 of their popular bottles and you can sort them by color, region, or even grape type. Each bottle displays how many points it has received, as well as any awards; and you can also read about the bottles in order to see if they interest you beyond just their label.

Those who aren’t subscribed but are interested in getting a few different bottles sent to them may be interested in Firstleaf’s featured wine bundles which include 12 bottles that are hand-selected based on a certain theme. From summer wines to member favorites, there are a number of bundles to choose from and this is a great way to save some money versus buying each bottle separately.

Unlike many of the wine subscription services that only offer selections of reds and whites, Firstleaf tends to impress with their range of reds, whites, roses, and even sparkling wines. If you aren’t really sure what you like yet, you can opt for a more general pick that includes all types and then simply rate and adjust the wines as you learn more of your tastes. Rating each wine you get helps the system to better learn, and ultimately leads to you ending up with far better choices month after month. 

Shipping & Delivery

Firstleaf is an alcohol subscription service, which means that those who are under the age of 21 are not legally allowed to partake in their products. Not only that, but certain states and areas have restrictions about shipping and receiving alcohol in the mail, which may impact whether or not you are personally able to get a package delivered to you. Before ordering with Firstleaf it is recommended that you check to make sure that you won’t have any issues, and that someone who is 21 or older will always be home when the delivery is made. 

Upon delivery, you will need to provide valid identification that proves you are of legal age and then you will need to sign for the package. If you know that you are unlikely to be home during the day, then Firstleaf recommends having your subscription mailed to your workplace so that there are no issues. 

So long as your area doesn’t have restrictions, Firstleaf does ship all across the USA, although at the present time they do not ship outside of the country. 

Shipments can be paused or cancelled at any time, but just ensure that you do this before your subscription renews. Firstleaf is an automatically renewing subscription service, so if you don’t manually cancel or pause then you will continue to get shipments regularly. Although many customers do opt for a monthly subscription, Firstleaf does also have the option of doing bi-monthly or even quarterly subscriptions depending on how much wine you typically consume.

Firstleaf Cost

Firstleaf is the same. To keep everything simple, every shipment you receive will cost a flat rate of $89.94 plus shipping and taxes. Although $90 may seem a bit steep at first, once that cost is broken down per bottle you are really only paying $15 each – a very standard, and in some cases below average, cost for a good wine. 

To enjoy the $15 per bottle cost, however, you do need to be a member and be actively subscribed to their subscription service. Those who aren’t are still free to order their wines a la carte for the online shop, but in that case you are paying full price per bottle as well as additional shipping charges. Individual bottle prices can range anywhere from $13.99 to $34.99, so you are certainly saving money when you subscribe.

As for the featured wine bundles, you can end up saving anywhere from 36% to 48% off the total cost of all the wines included making it well-worth looking into if you’re interested in receiving 12 bottles at once. In some cases the bundle will include 12 different wines, whereas others include two bottles of 6 different wines or even 3 bottles of 4 different wines. Prices for the bundles are almost all $149.95, but there is one option where you can save $10 and enjoy 12 bottles for only $139.95.

Bottom Line

There are a number of factors that help Firstleaf to stand out from the other wine subscription services, one of which is their impressive collection of award-winning bottles. This isn’t the type of box that is going to try and pawn off cheap bottles each month while pretending they are great, but instead, you are going to experience and enjoy a wide range of wine types that have been carefully selected based on both quality and taste. Those who are new to the world of wine will get to learn as they go, since Firstleaf always provides detailed write-ups about every bottle so that you can begin to understand the different tasting notes. Intermediate and expert wine drinkers, on the other hand, will get the opportunity to branch out beyond their comfort zone and to taste wines from regions they may have overlooked in the past. Regardless of your history with wine, Firstleaf really does offer something for everyone making them a worthwhile subscription box to check out. 

If you aren’t sure whether or not a wine subscription is right for you, take advantage of their introductory box that pairs you with 6 wines for you to try. Given their complete satisfaction guarantee, this is a risk-free offer and you can also save yourself some money by applying a discount to your purchase. With such a great offer available, there is no reason not to hop on their website today and see just what wines their quiz will pair you with.