It’s an acrylic bottle sealed with its own inverted acrylic wineglass. An easy twist and it’s open, releasing the glass, so in goes the wine. The complete package is, of course, entirely recyclable and carries the distinction of being the first glass-and-bottle combo in the world. (Hardys developed it for the 2006 touring season of Cirque du Soleil. It was a big hit right off the bat, so the company expanded it for service at sports events and similar occasions when glass isn’t allowed for safety’s sake.)

Ontario got some last fall, as a taste-see. Now the Shuttle is being offered across the country—it’s expected to be on LDB shelves in June. It’ll be available with two wines from the well-priced Stamp series: a Chardonnay-Sémillon ’07 and a Cabernet Shiraz ’08, at $4.29 apiece. The wines? Reliable varietals, fresh and crisp Sem Chard—a blend the Aussies do to a T (watch for an upcoming comparison tasting of Sémillon-Chardonnays right here)—and a big and brothy Cab Shiraz, to keep the burgers company. The white beats the red by a nose.

Wine with chocolate? Sure, but you have to choose the wine carefully. Port is pretty good; big reds, something late-harvested; or that luscious Tempranillo icewine from Inniskillin Okanagan.

But wine made from chocolate? New one on me.

New one on everyone. New Zealand’s endlessly enterprising Kim Crawford Wines has just released the first wine in the world that combines chocolate and grapes in a decadent liquid treat. They got the first “vintage” of Pinot Chocolat out in time for Easter in the home market. It’s not here yet, but I have every confidence that it will come. For once, the LDB won’t be able to use its timeworn excuse for refusing to list it—“Oh, we already have too many chocolate Pinots on the shelves.”

With the 2009 (they can call it that Down Under, of course), they took cocoa beans from Ghana, infused the emulsified mixture with pinot grapes, and spent eight gooey months tasting and tweaking. In press materials, Erica Crawford says it tastes absolutely delicious; she is somewhat biased, of course. But they do produce amazing wines all along the conventional spectrum at Kim Crawford, so we can expect nothing less than a full-on treat with this one.

They’re working on a Sauvignon Blanc Chocolat model and a Suisse Chardonnay, with Milk Chocolate Merlot on the way as well.

Meanwhile, closer to home—and still speaking of things chocolate—there’s Township 7 Merlot 2006, for the first time available as a general listing at the LDB, for $24.99. Oh my, but that’s a big, fat, mellow one, with major fruit and a soft but not skimpy finish. It’s beautiful through and through, and definitely Best of the Year material. Chocolate for nose and tongue, with mellowness derived from 22 months in oak.

At the winery’s Langley campus, they serve it in the tasting room with Salt & Pepper chocolate from Fort Langley’s Euphoria Chocolates, a custom creation with a pepper component that brings out the pepper aspects of the wine. Definitely a wow factor. Take your palate out there for a tasting; for times, see www.township7.com/.