Is there any better red wine around?

They pretty much are all better than most merlots

They pretty much are all better than most merlots

I would agree but I have discovered some really good Merlots lately and there are even better Merlot blends out there.

So to directly answer your question----

Yes

There is always something better..............

While I have found a few quite nice merlots, I prefer merlot blends; shiraz, cab sav etc.

As a single variety wine, my preference is shiraz or cab sav.

Merlots are harder to fuck up, though I guess you may be able overpower anything with a strong enough American Cab.

True, a nice blend/Meritage can be a beautiful thing.

Probably best to try to triangulate your preference. Probably showing my Californian leaning, but go into a wine shop an ask for a nice Zin, Pinot Noir, Syrah, Cab and blend and tunnel down from there.

As always, trust your ears.

Come on guys, I tied a lot, all fucking possible mixes and still think, if we are talking about single grape wine, MERLOT is damn indestructible

I do like South African at most, simply the best.

Chateau Petrus and other Pomerol wines are almost 100% merlot. It would be hard to find a better bottle of wine than a Petrus. Of course, it costs $2K/btl.

Well here is a great one to try.

http://store.nexternal.com/shared/StoreFront/default.asp?CS=lewis&StoreType=BtoC&Count1=530727565&Count2=447867989&ProductID=141&Target=products.asp

Merlots are good, but I don't drink enough to be able to tell you my favorite red. I generally do like them better than cabs, though. Actually, cab may be my least favorite so far.

As stated, Merlot is usually used as a blending wine. I'm surprised to hear it so praised as a single varietal.

For single grape varieties, Pinot noir (Burgundy in France) is very well regarded. I try to buy a mixed case from a specialist dealer every year and it's a great change from the standard supermarket plonk.

In Italy, Barolo (made from the Nebbiolo grape) is also very well regarded (and pricey!). I haven't had much experience of it as yet, though I did have quite a few glasses of it at my brother's wedding and it was superb.