So much good advice in this thread!
I was initially intimidated by the idea of drinking wine. Not only did I grow up in a household that did not consume alcohol, I live in a part of the country which still often looks askance at those who imbibe as being some kind of drunken sinners.
Having said that, I have managed to learn a lot about wine. We've done a lot of tours at wineries, large and small. While this is a lot of fun, it is (for me) only one part of learning about wine. Tours are great for telling you about the type(s) of grape(s) that are grown there and whether or not this winery produces all of their own grapes or buys from other sources to supplement their production. Tours also show you all kinds of behind the scenes things like big barrels or large metal vats and how they're used in the process. This is all good info for learning about how these things can affect the composition and taste of the wine. This can also be overwhelming at first, but it's good stuff to know eventually when you're thinking about which wine to buy next based on what you've tasted and liked so far.
As stated above, not all wines made from the same types of grapes taste the same. Different years can have vastly different tastes. Disliking some types of wine does not mean that a person has a defective wine tasting gene. Spending more money on wine does not improve its flavor. Most of the wines we buy for home use are between $9-20. Drink what tastes good to you. Your wine tastes may change over time. (Mine have.)
Oh, and when sampling wines at home, start with the dry wines first.
I enjoy tasting new wines, and I hope your friend enjoys the adventure as well! :-)