new to wine

[yvonne]

Hi ,I am new to wine, I went to wine a tasting in St Augustine a few months ago but tried so many different ones I don;t remember them all.I do remember one thing, most tasted bitter or woody. I am looking for somthing sweet, fruity,mild,not expensive I don't want to spend alot on a bottle and not like it have to throw it in the trash.I bought a wine book from St Augustine but lost it before I read all of it. If I remember correctly most whites are dry, correct? white wines would be chardnay's,Savinon's ( soory about the spelling), Also what does Sherry and Congac taste like? I always wondered about those two and Port, i tried the port, it was very strong and i really didn't care for it. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

[ShortWiner]

I'd recommend that you try Beaujolais from what you say you like. There are many kinds, but if you go to a good wine shop and ask for not-too-expensive Beaujolais (bo-zhoo-lay), they'll be able to help you.

Also would recommend getting another wine book--the questions you're asking are good, but have long answers!

If you didn't like Port, you probably won't like Sherry (both are fortified, making them more alcoholic than most other wines) and you definitely won't enjoy Cognac (it's distilled--very high alcohol). You may work up to these things.

Enjoy, and welcome to the board!

[Innkeeper]

Hi Yvonne, and welcome to the Wine Board. Cognac is a distilled beverage such as Scotch and Bourbon. It is distilled from grapes, with others are distilled from grain. Sherry and Port are wines that have been "fortified" with distilled spirits. They are higher in alcohol than table wine (non fortified, non sparkling wine), and are usually used as before or after dinner wine (sometimes with dessert).

Agree that Beaujolais is a good red wine to start with. If it is still too dry for you try Lambrusco. For whites try an off dry riesling from Germany or California. Most chenin blanc from California is off dry too. Most of these two from California that are dry will say so on the label.