Isabel Ferrando – Photo Courtesy of Domaine Famille Isabel Ferrando

The Gutsiest Winemaker In Chateauneuf
Stunning New Wines That Change Everything

Isabel Ferrando is the gutsiest winemaker in Chateauneuf-du-Pape. It takes guts and conviction to achieve all that she has in twenty years. 

With a successful career in banking, Isabel in 2002 made the dramatic change to leave the industry and purchase an estate in Chateauneuf-du-Pape. While the region had several noted women running domaines, in the early 2000s there were almost no female winemakers in Chateauneuf-du-Pape and none from outside the region. Domaine Saint Prefert was born as we know it today, followed shortly by Domaine Isabel Ferrando. The 2003 vintage was the first commercial vintage of Saint Prefert and the attention and praise immediately poured in. Saint Prefert became one of the darlings of the region. The luxury cuvées of the domaine began garnering tremendous critical acclaim and extremely big scores from Robert Parker and James Molesworth. Much was written about her friendship and mentorship from the legendary Henri Bonneau and her consultant Philippe Cambie. 

Domaine Saint Prefert and Domaine Isabel Ferrando rose to be one of the most featured and acclaimed estates of Chateauneuf-du-Pape. Today, Domaine Saint Prefert as we all know it is gone. Isabel Ferrando has made the gutsy move to dramatically flip the two Domaines on their head and change direction with the range starting with the newly released 2020 vintage.

Today, the two domaines are combined into one: Domaine Famille Isabel Ferrando. 

The biggest change is that the range of three red Chateauneuf-du-Pape from Saint Prefert is gone and is now only one wine. One extremely good wine to say the least. The range of Domaine Famille Isabel Ferrando will represent two white Chateauneuf-du-Pape wines with one a pure old-vine Clairette bottled only in magnum just like Saint Prefert. The red Chateauneuf-du-Pape is where the gutsy and dramatic change occurs. There are only three now when there used to be five. Colombis, the pure Grenache expression from outside Saint Prefert, remains, as well as the fairly new and ultra-rare F601 pure Cinsault. The Saint Prefert Cuvée August Favier and Cuvée Charles Giraud are no longer. The two luxury cuvées are now the blended base of the Chateauneuf-du-Pape that represents the terroir of Saint Prefert. 

This is a bold move for Isabel and one that in my opinion she has pulled off yet again from the start. At lunch this past week, Isabel explained that the identity of Chateauneuf-du-Pape is the concept of blending. Blending not just grapes but also terroirs to harness the best of Chateauneuf. With twenty years of experience and now a deep understanding of her vineyards and vines, Isabel is confident in the ability of her vineyards, team and herself that the sum of Saint Prefert will always be greater than their individual parts. 

Isabel credits Bonneau with planting the idea years ago in her. As she spoke of Bonneau’s impact and mentorship it was not of a style emulation but rather of his love and respect for the vines, terroir and inherent nature of the “ vigneron”. It was Bonneau that said “you are who you are, embrace the wines that naturally come from your style. Go with what nature give you. Less is more.” With the health and understanding of the Saint Prefert vineyards today, Isabel has embarked on a complete expression of the terroir taking inspiration from her late dear friend and mentor. 

For me the Domaine Famille Isabel Ferrando Chateauneuf-du-Pape is the antithesis of what I think of as a Henri Bonneau wine. The 2020 Chateauneuf-du-Pape is sumptuously elegant and refined, almost transparent or Pinot-like in color. The florality and fruit is explosive and the tannin structure is so detailed and rounded that it seamlessly disappears on the palate as if a view across an infinite pool against the sea. It is a Chateauneuf-du-Pape that is built in the vineyard and then gently infused. The classic techniques of pumpovers and punch downs are not employed, yielding a wine that expresses its home immediately. While the concept of one singular wine reminds me of Chateau de Beaucastel, Rayas, Le Vieux Donjon and Clos de Papes, it is the grace and multiple layers of the wine that really make Famille Isabel Ferrando stand apart from the rest. 

“...one thing that remains constant is the incredible quality that continues to emerge from this talented winemaker. - Jeb Dunnuck”

Over lunch we spoke of how the past twenty years have shaped Isabel as a vigneron and brought her to this spot in time with the domaine. As a driven person, who is focused on the future not just for herself but her family, her daughter who plans to join the domaine and for all vigneron, Isabel told us that her responsibility is to strive for constant innovation to propel the estate forward. And that innovation today in wine is the “innovation of yesterday”. A point that Isabel strongly believes. It is what led her to embrace biodynamic farming, it is what led her to build her new winery with only materials from within or surrounding her vineyards. It is what led Isabel to re-embrace the DNA of Chateauneuf-du-Pape and focus on the singular blended wine to showcase the best of the vintage.

Cheers,
Jeremy