RESERVE Petit Chai

Literally translated, Petit Chai (pronounced peh-teet shay) means “little barrel room” in French. At Columbia Crest, however, we like to think of our Petit Chai as a winery-within-a-winery – the heart and soul of our Reserve program.

While the origin of our Reserve wines is in the vineyard, it’s in the Petit Chai that our head winemaker, Ray Einberger, assembles his final product. Using the finest French and American oak barrels available, Ray and his team deliberate how each barrel will impact the individual varieties. Once this recipe is finalized, the wines age for over two years in the Petit Chai.