Start with regions that don’t break the bank so that you aren’t let down. Pick up a Cru Beaujolais and a Douro and see which end of the spectrum you prefer and go from there. If you need specific producers I’m happy to help.

honestly, I learned to appreciate small batch whisky and wine at the local wineries and distilleries in my state. We have 140 wineries in my state the grow their own grapes and process those...we love to take a few days and drive to each one in an area to sample their goods...

I drink scotch, some bourbon here and there. The odd whiskey as well. I thought I’d like bigger, bolder wines like Cabernet Sauvignon, Bordeaux blends, etc.

I actually really enjoy Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, Riesling, and more medium bodied wines. I drink a cab or something when I want to, but it’s far from my go to.

Long way of saying try several things at a lower price point, and once you kind of hone in on what works, move up. Don’t be afraid of white wine either - tons of great flavor there that some people miss.

German Riesling (Spatlese, Auslese, Beerenauslese, Trockenbeerenauslese, Eiswein).

Try each of the “Big 6” most popular varietals - Sauvignon Blanc, Riesling, and Chardonnay for whites, and Pinot Noir, Merlot, and Cabernet Sauvignon for reds. That will give you a good starting range of the wine world, although of course there are far more varietals and regions out there. Write down what you like and don’t like, and use that as a good starting point for further exploration. Like if you enjoyed the Cabernet Sauvignon a lot you might look at sampling that or similar wines from Bordeaux, Rioja, and Napa.

I am still very much a beginner but this is how I started:

• looked up a beginners course at the nearest college (all my fellow classmates were also doing it as a hobby after work type of thing so i didn’t feel out of place) I learned the most here in terms of intro to grapes, regions etc
• buy a book: wine folly or the bible by Jancis - very handy guide
• wine store - I recently started picking a grape and key regions in the world then a wine from that region. For example Pinot noir - i would get a bottle from France, New Zealand, Oregon, Canada (represent) and compare all - maybe not the best method but it has helped me a lot in terms of notes
• every time my partner and I open a bottle we say out loud our tasting notes - makes me realize if i didn’t pick up on something
• join a wine club - after doing the above, you would have enough of a knowledge to appreciate the wines provided

I’m only at this point in my wine education but I have enjoyed every bit of learning so far! Hope this helps!

this sucks with covid because tastings are pretty much not happening but a local wine shop is your best bet. Buy some bottles, talk to the staff and tell them what you like and dont like. Hopefully they have tastings or be willing to pour tastes for you. Outside of that WSET is great and has a range of courses from beginner level 1 to diploma program which basically is a college degree

Drink!

Seriously though, ask for a recommendation at the (ideally a wine) store on your budget. Everyone starts out somewhere. You'll taste some rotters, you'll find some stars. It's all part of the fun of it. You don't have to do it all in a short space of time though, you've got until now until your final day to enjoy the journey.

Do you have Total Wine in your area? Mine does wine tasting like every week and u can sign up and go there. And it's free.

That being said, Costco has decent wine starting at $5.99 bottle so for $20, u can walk out with 2-3 different variants. If u like sweet wine, get a moscato, then throw in a sauvignon blank (white) and some sorta sparking Rose wine. Then see what u prefer and go from there.

My wine is a red wine drinker and I prefer white.

Here's a list of styles of wine/appelations to look for that I think can be fun for your journey:

Vinho Verde (white/rosé)

Barbera d'Alba/Barbera d'Asti/Barbera di Montferatto (red)

Gavi (white)

Côtes du Rhône (red/white/rosé)

Chinon (red/white/rosé)

Austrian Grüner Veltliner (white)

Vino Nobile di Montepulciano (red)

Mosel Riesling (white)

Rioja (red/white)

Oregon Pinot Noir (red)

New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc (white)

The ideal, in my opinion, is to find a shop that vibes with you and get recommendations within these categories that fit your budget. There are SO many more categories that are amazing, but many will vary dramatically in quality or are pricey, making them difficult to traverse when you don't know specifically what you're looking for. For those who might object that this list seems to favor old world wines, I just think that these categories have a little more cohesion to give a beginner an idea of what they're all about (much new world wine, though often amazing, is much more heavily dependent on the maker, rather than the appelation). I've also certainly missed some good categories for wine acolytes.

Check out Eric Asimov's How to Love Wine, as well as a wine reference book (my favorite is The World Atlas of Wine by Hugh Johnson and Jancis Robinson) to look up and read about wines that you enjoy.

As a recent beginner (I’d like to think I’ve moved beyond beginner now haha) I had to stop thinking about wines in terms of “brands.” Start thinking about it in terms of grapes (or blends of grapes) and places where they grow them. There are certain places where certain grapes grow best. Now, that’s not to say you shouldn’t try a wines from regions that you typically don’t think about, but you should try to start with the typical grape/region pairings.

For example, try a Cabernet Sauvignon from California, one from Chile, and a left-bank Bordeaux (Cabernet Sauvignon blended with Merlot and Cabernet Franc). Let’s say you like the one from California and want to try more, then you maybe try one from Napa and one from Sonoma. THEN maybe you can start to look at regions within Napa or even individual producers that have vineyards there.

Thats not to say that producer or brand isn’t important, it’s just not as important when you are trying to figure out what you like in the first place, in my opinion.

Find a good wine store in your area. Ask questions. Attend tastings. Explore one area you like thoroughly- go down that rabbit hole. Then try another. In general though, I get a lot of enjoyment of the price and quality of 1) Spain (ie Rioja), 2) South America (ie Argentine Malbec), 3) France (ie Loire Reds and Whites). Some top of my head suggestions.

This isn’t meant to come across as gatekeeping at all, but I’ve had beginners take it the wrong way.

Why are you drinking wine? E.g. - Are you drinking wine to enjoy with food? Are you drinking to get a buzz? Or are you drinking to feed a curiosity to learn about wine?

Depending on your answer, the recommendations can be wildly different.

The best wines are the ones that you like. Wine is a very subjective thing and everyone's palates are different. As far as your initial question, I think you are on the right track. Go to a wine store in the area and ask if they have any "end of bin" specials. These are wines that are running low and will not be restocked. You can find some great deals on wines from different areas, regions and varietals. Take advantage of any wine bars in your area as well. It's like an ice cream shop for grown-ups where you can try lots of wines without committing to bottles. Cheers!

Skip the brand associations for now. Find a club that gives you maximum variety x control.

Once you try something, index for that. Repeat. Then isolate winemakers / grapes / regions.

Finger Lakes, Niagara, Virginia

Wikipedia: Michigan has some neato wine regions thanks to the Great Lakes AND with all that water, we’ll never see a major drought until judgement day.

And numerous cideries & breweries of course.

Texas Hill Country

Finger lakes, NY.

The Columbia gorge in Oregon or Washington, Walla Walla in Washington, or the Snake river area in Idaho.

Wine is so vast and complicated that you can go with either strategy to get started. If you like wine, you'll keep exploring different varietals and regions eventually. When I started, I focused much more on different varietals and it worked completely fine.

If you're expanding your portfolio, I've always recommended taking small steps, it can eventually lead you everywhere. You like California Cabernet? Try that a California Syrah. You like that? Try an Australian Shiraz. You like that? Try a Northern Rhone, which might lead you to Southern Rhone then to a Spanish Granacha and so on.

Sometimes you see more wandering that taking the direct route. And it leaves you free to indulge changing moods, situations and opportunities.

But however you go, happy journey.

I think both but when you drink a wine labeled by its region (Bordeaux for example) try to get an understanding of the blend and barrel process. It’s helps with the flavor identification

Both.

Exploring Chardonnay for example, you could try a Chablis from France and compare it to a Chardonnay from Beechworth. Different regions stylistically treat the same grape different, with all the additional influence from climate etc

Definitely agree with both, and I think Chardonnay is a great one to start off with if you like white wine. I used to say that I didn’t like Chardonnay but loved Chablis, before I realised Chablis is, in fact, Chardonnay. It’s a fun one to explore because it changes so much based on where it’s grown (generally speaking, warmer climates = rounder, roper flavours) and how it’s treated (oak, no oak, malolactic fermentation, lees, etc.).

But it’s also fun to explore different grapes. Just searching this sub for grapes you know you like should yield some suggestions for other grapes you might like. The Wine Folly book can also be a good guide here - similar wine varietals are grouped together in it.

For me how I got into wine was first starting out with sweeter wines. I really like the major wine brands Cupcake for my whites and Apothic for my reds- they are usually moderately priced, decent quality, and I can find them at most retailers. I would buy three bottles and just sample them. Cupcake Riesling (sweet white) Cupcake Chardonnay (dry white) and Apothic Crush Blend (sweet dry red). Whichever you like, just go try out other brands of Rieslings, Chardonnays, etc.

I usually recommend Dr. L (Loosen) Riesling for beginners. It’s cheap and under $10, which is a barrier for many people. In general, German Riesling tends to be among the best value wines (well made, ageable) and among the most delicious. John Jos. (JJ) Prüm is one of the very best producers and widely available if you’re willing to pay a bit more.

I started with the really velvety Oregon and California pinot noirs like Elouan, Argyle, Meiomi, etc. These are made to be mass produced and mass consumed and are great crowd pleasers if you're just getting started or don't care to think too hard about your wine. You should be able to find one of these in just about any grocery store or liquor store in the US

From Wine Searcher: Vineyards in California's Central Coast
©Cupcake Vineyards

Cupcake Vineyards is a wine brand based out of California's Central Coast that produces value-priced wines from established wine regions around the world. The wines are produced and marketed for the American palate. Cupcake was first established in 2008 and is owned by The Wine Group.

This for me is the epitome of corporate grocery store wine. I would prefer to refer newbies to independent small growers who make honest, non-manipulated wine. I'm afraid the wine business has gone the way of the food/grocery store business- owned by a small group of mega corporations. Try googling Constellation Brands to see how many "brands" they own, representing hundreds of millions of cases. Their main concern is distribution channels, which includes supermarket chains, and large retailers. This is why Constellation bought the Robert Mondavi company. Their target was Woodbridge, mainly because it was already in supermarkets, opening up distribution for their other brands. Rant over.

I also recommend if you live near a Trader Joe’s checking out their wine selection- their $4 wine bottles are typically from local growers and have never disappointed me.

German Riesling. Start with a trocken (dry/not sweet) or Kabinet (typically mildly sweet, but balanced with acid) and go from there.

Edit: you can get some great German Rieslings for about $22. If that's not quite in your budget yet, try Kung Fu Girl Riesling (from the US). Great value and very good wine that's off-dry (in between trocken and kabinett).

Find a bottle of JJ Prum Reisling Spatlese. Its a German wine. You'll like it.

After spending 3 months focused on Bordeaux, I'm feeling confident to learn about Burgundy.

What are good beginners burgundies to start with?

I was recommended this 2019 Dider Fornerol and it was wonderful. Earthy and dark. Well balanced and thick despite being medium bodied. Really contrasts with California Pinot! Excited for more.

My honest suggestion? Don't get into Burgundy...

But if you are set on getting into it....Forgetting about specific wines for a minute..I'd start with just understanding how Burgundy is setup as it is different than everywhere else. This will help avoid confusion when you're looking at the wines. As far as where to start wine wise.. Look for better producers Bourgogne as a start to producer style/quality and then branch out into other producers bourgogne, especially those that are in the same style you are starting to like. Look for mid level producers village wines to understand the differences in the villages. You'll end up gravitating almost exclusively to producers if you get into burgundy...which is a bit ironic given how hyper terroir focused burgundy is..

I have really enjoyed Harmand-Geoffroy, they make a reasonably priced Bourgogne that always over delivers.

First step, save some serious cash! It gets expensive real fast, especially right now. In all seriousness, the village wines are a great start to get a sense of how terroir influences these wines. Kermit Lynch imports some nice affordable bottles that are good quality and QPR (for burgundy… QPR ratios are adjusted for this region). Don’t forget to dive into the Chardonnay side too - my personal favorite wines coming out of the region.

Yea looking back at my bottle prices I would have to agree. At $45 a bottle something like 1/2 the price would be better. But Burgundy in general prices have come unhinged from reality.

Depends what you want to focus on. Take WSET for comprehensive global wines/regions/varietals. Wine bible is a great resource. Vino italiano to focus on all 20 Italian regions and their wines. 

World Atlas of Wine by Jancis Robinson & Hugh Jonson

Wine folly

Windows on the world, wine folly, wine Bible.

Wine folly with all its infographics looks like a great way to get a handle on things with minimal actual reading. Maybe it just appeals to how I learn but I think it would be great for beginners.

Also, depending on where this winery is, a book on that region.

Tasmania ! I know Aussie wine is well known, but it's usually focused on the SA region. Tasmanian wine is quite fab. Great cool climate. Have had some particularly excellent Pinot Noir there.

Kakheti, Georgia is a winner. I love the Saperavi grape. And the Qveri style of wine making. You get the amber wines as well. So unusual but so drinkable.

South America, specifically Chile doesn’t get nearly enough love. There are some really great QPR reds coming from the higher quality producers there.

Croatia! Just came back from tastings there and loved it! 

Check out the Maule Valley for probably some of the best value Cab Sav in the world.

Sssssh. Let’s agree to keep Slovenia a secret. Two of my favorites - Movia Veliko Rdece and Jakoncic 'Carolina Noir' from the Goriska Brda region.

Check out Pedro Parra in the Itata Valley. He’s a renowned vineyard geologist who returned home to Chile after working with world class wineries in Europe and is making is own wine.

I’ll second the suggestion for Maipo and Colchagua, with the addition of Casablanca valley.

I would consider Carménère the “national” grape variety of Chile. There’s a backstory there, but the short version is that it is an old Bordeaux variety. Think dark fruit but with a much more pronounced green bell pepper note than Cabernet. Obliqua Apalta Vinyard Carménère is my favorite I’ve tried, but you can bet that anything ~$25 plus is going to be of good quality. Definitely expect a new world style heavy fruit profile, but the bell pepper is very unique.

Other big reds will be good too. Villard (particular their Tanagra bottling) and Polkura both have great Syrah. If you can find it, Ventisquero Enclave Cabernet Sauvignon drinks like a very high quality Napa Cab for about $80.

Maurizio Garibaldi and Antiyal are other producers that feature a variety of different grapes in the $25-50 range that also punch above their weight class.

Slovenia has Great wine.