foray into france

[gobigred]

Hello,
This is my first post, I've been reading the messg board for awhile and have gotten some good tips. However, I'd appreciate some specific advice if anyone has the time.
I've been into wines for about 4-5 years now... two trips to sonoma/napa and I shudder to think of the amount of green I've spent on this "hobby". Up until now I have almost exclusively drank CA (or at least west coast) wines. This whole wine endeavor was so overwhelming at first I though I better take it region by region if I were to really understand wine. Now, I'm trying to expand and learn about french wines. I've had a few, mostly rhone, and havent been all that hot on them. I do drink the neuveau bouj ever year (usually love it) and have had a few villages bottles. Besides that only a few odd's and ends, the deboeufs, B&G's, ect. My favorite US varietals are CabSav and Zin. Specifically, right now I love the Renwood (all of them), Ravenswoods (never had a bad one), Ridge, Rancho Zabaco. My favorite cab is Cakebread when I can afford it and Dry Creek when I cant. I've read a few books and think I have moderate understanding of the french wine making regions, ect. I guess what I'm asking is, for an american pallete, should I start in Burgandy, Bordeaux,or Rhone regions? Also, are french wines as varied as the US wines. Does a CDP always taste like a CDP? Can you get good french wines ready to drink for $10-15? Is it even worth it with so many good american wines out there? Thanks in advance for any response.
P.S. I live in a terrible region for buying wine, I still can't find the Chateau Les Fiefs De Lagrange suggested in a earlier post. I see a lot of Jadot bottles out there, any good ones come to mind?