I just use bleach and water. Let them soak overnight. The next morning, the labels are either floating on the surface of the water, or they just fall off the bottles. Bleach is cheap.
Welcome...and I hope it turns out great!
I'm also a newbie, and this is my first post here, though I've been lurking.
I'm waiting on a simple Canadian lager to finish fermenting (secondary)...that was my first try. Looking forward to it.