Former banker with the Credit Agricole, Isabel Ferrando, bought Domaine Saint Préfert with her husband in 2003 from the Serre family (the domaine was started in the 1920s by Fernand Serre, a pharmacist from Avignon). In 2004 and 2005 she added to her initial 13.2ha when she purchased the two Colombis vineyards, increasing the size of her holding to around 15ha. This has since increased further, with a recent purchase of some additional vines not far away from Rayas.

On taking over the domaine, she immediately set to work on improving both cellar and vineyard, something which is regarded as a long term project. As such she practices organic farming, crop thinning to control and reduce yields, ages the wines in both demi muids and smaller oak barrels and, for the reds, bottles without filtration.

Isabel’s principal block is situated in the Quartier de Serres, the soil is galets roulés and reputedly benefits from more sun than the rest of the appellation. From these vines are produced the white Châteauneuf plus the red cuvées of Réserve Auguste Favier and Collection Charles Giraud. Her other cuvée, Colombis, comes from two vineyards, each of roughly 1.25ha, one to the west of the village on a gentle, sandy slope, the other to the north, but south facing, on a heavy clay soil, topped with galets roulés.

Prior to buying the domaine, Isabel trained from 2001 at both Carpentras and Orange and worked at Domaine Raspail-Ay. She clearly has a natural flare for winemaking, something immediately highlighted by her deft handling of her first vintage at the domaine, the challenging 2003, which she tackled like a veteran vigneronne. This talent has not gone unrecognised, with Isabel earning plaudits from the great and the good of the wine trade from her debut vintage onwards.