I have been making wine for 8 years or so and have not found one I don't like yet, although I do not drink dry white wines as a rule. Most of the wines I make are dry reds with a few sweet fruity ones for my friends. Some are bold, some light-medium body but all are good, depending on personal taste.
If anyone thinks that making wine at home is hard, or complicated trust me, if you are making it from a kit it is easy. The most important rule I have found is "sterilize, sterilize, sterilize". Just using water to rinse and clean equipment is not enough. Sterilizing is easy, just add the sterilizer to hot water and let the items soak for a minute or two, so it is not that you have to buy equipment to do this.
Temperature is another important consideration. Most wines have to be between 68-75 degrees during the process, some between 72-75 degrees. Stick on thermometers (a few bucks) and a brew belt ($30.00) will help with this if you don't plan on heating your house to these temps for 4-6 weeks. I make my wine in the kitchen, near an outlet for the brew belt if I am not making it in spring and fall when these temps are easy to achieve. I do make wine all year long, so don't shy away from the winter months, you just have to be careful. Fermentation or clearing will not happen if temps are off.
Basic wine making equipment can run about $120.00 and a kit anywhere from $60-140 so you can make good wine for around $3.00-$5.00 a bottle and up depending on kit. I usually add labels, shrink wrap caps, good corks, and a filter or two (depending on whether red or white) for a total of about $20.00 if your kit does not contain the labels, some do. Another purchase is potassium metabisulphite powder, about $2.00 for a jar (generally you add 1/4 tsp. per 6 gallons) if you plan on storing you wine for over 6 months. I add it to all wines but the fruity ones, since I allow aging of at least 3 months in bottles before I drink it. This is why I continually have batches brewing, waiting is not easy!
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