Le Chai is no stranger to Luxembourg. The sub-brand of big player Munhower launched several stores here. However, this one had to be different, better and bigger! This one had to be the real flagship store at the new Luxembourg shopping site ‘Infinity’.

What’s in a name?

‘Le Chai’ is French for: le lieu ou le vin se repose, which translates into English as the place where the wine rests. When we think of a wine cellar, we definitely think (besides lots of wine) about the arches in the cellar ceiling. The perspective in the shop and the woodwork on the glass door are therefore a reference to both the arches in a wine cellar and the shape of a bottle.

The “casco” space was special in its kind: 20 meters long and 7 meters high. When we were assigned to design a wine store with an accompanying bar, we had an idea of what it should look like right away. The perspective of the arches guides the visitors thoughout the store. They are the immediate eye-catcher of this wine library. The trompe l’oeil effect offers lots of depth and instant stopping power, yet it adds clarity and calm to the room. It’s a space with serenity where wine is dominant. The various niches are painted in a gradient of beige and pink, creating even more depth.

Because Le Chai puts service, advice and quality first, they offer a personal sommelier. The sommelier gladly helps customers with their search for the perfect wine. Behind every niche, both amateurs and connoisseurs are surprised by a unique offer of local, French and world wines. In a special niche, the prestigious wines are kept at their correct temperature.

With some 800 different wines, it was quite a challenge to achieve an elegant and structured way of displaying all the bottles. Within this context, where product is king, standard wooden wine shelves were too heavy and out of place. That’s why all wine shelves are custom made. A keen observer will notice that the shelves were made out of concrete nets, which are normally used for building. They were welded and varnished to create an elegant wine shelve that is completely in line with the store and its product.

In the niches in the back, Le Chai has a small selection of spirits and champagnes to discover. Because spirits are an entirely different universe than wine, we thought it was important to present them in a different way while still staying in line with the rest of the store. Spirit bottles have to be presented vertically, as opposed to wine which has to be presented horizontally. Because in the old days spirits were also used as medicine (gin for example), we made an abstraction of an apothecary cabinet in which to present them.

The perspective of the arches will guide you to the impressive glass door with woodwork. This door leads to the wine bar. Welcome to the last and maybe most fun part of Le Chai! Here you can taste everything you have seen. Or just relax and sip some wine. Believe us when we say that chances you’ll leave with a bottle or even a crate of wine are very high! Hungry? No worries, they serve great planchas with fresh charcuterie, grilled vegetables and cheese.

Unlike the store, the wine bar has a cozy, darker atmosphere. Because wine is king here, we purposely chose to accentuate the bar. The bar front is made out of ‘flexible wood’, behind which we put LED for a nice glow. Also, take a look at the custom-made chandelier and the huge fumed mirror that finish off the bar.

Need a new perspective on wine? Visit Le Chai at the “Infinity shopping site” Luxembourg.