Cheap Merlots or Pinot Noirs for the Beginner?

[red_hydrangea]

Hi guys!

I just discovered this site, and wow! You guys are really, really informative. [img]http://wines.com/ubb/smile.gif[/img]

I am a complete and total novice, so please be gentle with me [img]http://wines.com/ubb/smile.gif[/img] I love cheap red wine. I know, I know, it's kind of gauche, but I'm just out of college and I'm on a tight budget, and I like to enjoy a cheap, robust red--like a cab sauvignon or a zinfandel. I've run the gamut of Sutter Home, Beringer, Little Penguin, Yellowtail, Barefoot Cellars, Turning Leaf, Bella Sera--you get the picture. The middle-shelf stuff. I enjoy a good cheap robust red, if it doesn't break the bank.

I'm looking to explore other cheap reds. I'd like to try a Shiraz every now and then, but the Yellowtail one is just too syrupy and vanilla-y for me. I also haven't found very many cheap Merlots or Pinot Noirs that I like. I am a rank amateur, but I do know that Merlot tends to be softer than the more robust reds. However, the cheap Merlots all seem to be really mushy and blah. I've also found that cheap Pinot Noirs don't really do much for me.

Does anyone have an under-$10 recommendation for a cheapy merlot or cheapy pinot noir that doesn't suck? I'd like to get a new appreciation for other (value-priced) reds.