total novice vin du pays question

[SadRabbit]

here's the deal. i thought i'd like to explore wines a little but i know nothing.i wonder should i try something at random?should i compare various types, or should i pick one type and try various versions?
being that i don't know if i'm going to be particularly fond of something, and keeping in mind that any exceptional qualities would be lost on me, i decide to keep to rather moderately priced wines. and i decide to try to get a general overview of the different types of wine.
so what do i do?there's about a million bordeaux out there and a billion merlot...so i'm reading about these vins du pays and i figure even if they're not great wines, they may serve as inepensive examples of particular varieties...just to get an inkling of the difference between a cabernet and a zinfandel,for example.
so you know what?there's a billion of them too. so i grab one at random. it's a 1997 syrah from les jamelles.now i would like to know if the wine i'm trying is representative of what a better syrah would be like. that is, will i be able to get a general feel forwhat i like with these vins du pays or should i just lay out some cash on bigger names and gamble?
has anyone ever tried this particular wine? or heard of it? what should i be looking for?

[Innkeeper]

The Vins du Pays are relatively new on the scene. A decade or two ago the only Varietally labeled wines came from the USA, the Alsace region of France, and a few from Italy and Eastern Europe. Now tons of them come from Australia, New Zealand, Chile, Argentina, South Africa, Italy, and Eastern Europe. In desparation the French fought back with the Vins du Pays. Since you have one, give it a go. If you like it, try others from that producer. Otherwise go with the more well know producers such as B&G, La Ville Ferme, and Georges Duboeuf. You can also get resonably priced wines from most of the other places mentioned above. The Santa Rita 120 wines from Chile are quite good for starter wines, as are the Ecco Domini from Italy.

[This message has been edited by Innkeeper (edited 05-08-2000).]

[SadRabbit]

thank you for the help. i will keep my eyes open for these after i finish this bottle.
or perhaps i'll just finish this bottle and forget about keeping my eyes open [img]http://www.wines.com/ubb2/smile.gif[/img]