Maxime Oudiette

The History of Champagne Maxime Oudiette

The story of Domaine Maxime Oudiette has its roots in the early 20th century, when Léon and Gabrielle Aubert began working the vines of Beaunay after the Second World War. Their daughter Arlette and her husband André Oudiette devoted their lives to improving and passing on this winegrowing heritage before handing it down to their sons. Their eldest son, Pascal Oudiette, supported by his wife Sylvie, took a decisive step by installing the first press in the early 1990s, laying the foundations for a true grower-producer approach. Generations of devotion to the Champagne terroir are thus present in every bottle produced here.

In 2012, after eight years of studying viticulture and enology and formative experiences with renowned producers such as Champagne Thuillier and the celebrated Champagne Jacques Selosse (working alongside Anselme Selosse himself), Maxime joined the family estate with a clear, ambitious vision: to produce champagnes rooted in the character of their individual plots. He made his first champagnes under his own label in 2015, after building his own cellar. The Maxime Oudiette brand was officially established in 2018, and all the vineyards have been certified organic since 2021, marking another step in the winemaker’s commitment to conscientious, sustainable viticulture.

Terroirs and Vineyards of Champagne Maxime Oudiette

Domaine Maxime Oudiette farms approximately three hectares of vines spread across several notable named vineyard sites in and around Beaunay. Located south of the Côte des Blancs, this area has considerable geological diversity: Beaunay’s subsoil consists mainly of white chalk formed by the sedimentation of coccoliths during the Late Campanian, while some plots have fossil-bearing clay streaked with iron oxide and rich in fossilized Gryphaea oysters (the Les Gras d’Huile site), and others have humus and brown clay over limestone (the Les Hautes Sources Souris site). This diversity of soils is directly reflected in the distinct aromatic and textural profiles of each cuvée, defining the character and richness of Maxime’s plot-by-plot approach.

Chardonnay accounts for most of the vineyard, alongside a few old Meunier vines and some Pinot Noir. The vines are managed through an ambitious agroecological approach: organic and biodynamic practices, vitiforestry, permaculture, and natural ground cover between the rows. The aim is to create a stable, self-sustaining, resilient ecosystem that can adapt to climatic variations while fully expressing the minerality and distinctive character of each plot. Biodiversity is cultivated as an asset, and each named vineyard site is harvested, pressed, and vinified separately, allowing Maxime to capture the precise influence of the soil on the wine.

Winemaking at Champagne Maxime Oudiette

For Maxime Oudiette, winemaking is a deeply personal stage: a meeting of human endeavor, the memory of a year’s weather, and the character conveyed by each named vineyard site. Convinced that 80% of the work is done in the vineyard, he intervenes as little as possible in the cellar so the wine can faithfully express its terroir. At harvest, he carefully seeks optimal grape ripeness: tasting the berries, juice, and seeds is an essential step before picking begins. After light settling without added sulfur, the musts go directly into barrels, allowing native yeasts to start alcoholic fermentation slowly and naturally.

All winemaking takes place in small 228-liter oak barrels, allowing the wine to oxygenate gently, breathe, and gradually develop its character. The wines then rest on their natural lees for at least eleven months, without fining, filtration, or tartrate stabilization. Sulfur is added only in small amounts after fermentation and is the only additive used at the estate. The final dosage is tailored to each cuvée and vintage and is always very low (extra brut), preserving the wine’s tension, minerality, and purity of fruit. This approach of complete non-intervention sets Maxime Oudiette’s champagnes apart: living, precise wines with a profound sense of identity.

The Cuvées of Champagne Maxime Oudiette

Les Gras d’Huile (Blanc de Blancs, Extra Brut): The estate’s flagship cuvée, Champagne Les Gras d’Huile is a Blanc de Blancs made from 100% Chardonnay grown in the Beaunay plot of the same name, where the first vines were planted in 1993. The plot’s soil is fossil-bearing calcareous clay streaked with iron oxide and rich in fossilized Gryphaea oysters. It forms a surface crust that limits water evaporation. Each release is made primarily from a single harvest, supplemented by a perpetual reserve established in 2015 using grapes from the same plot. The wine ferments spontaneously in François Frère oak barrels, ages on its lees for 11 months, then matures in bottle for at least 30 months before disgorgement. Dosage is around 1.5 g/L. Les Gras d’Huile wines are described as long, complex, and capable of extended aging, with saline and floral notes characteristic of the Champagne terroir of the Petit Morin.

HSS Les Hautes Sources Souris (Blanc de Noirs, Extra Brut): Made from 100% Pinot Noir planted in 1990 in the Les Hautes Sources Souris plot in Beaunay, this Blanc de Noirs is one of the estate’s most distinctive expressions. The south-facing plot has brown clay over limestone and two underground springs that naturally cool the site, giving the wine particular freshness and tension. It is fermented directly in 228-liter barrels, aged on its natural lees for 11 months without topping up, then bottled in July or August for at least 30 months of maturation. The cuvée also includes wine from a perpetual reserve started in 2018. Dosage is 1.5 g/L. The wine offers great finesse, finely etched minerality, and remarkable length for a highly precise Blanc de Noirs.

Rosé d’Infusion (Extra Brut): This distinctive rosé Champagne is a blend of 98% Chardonnay (from the Les Gras d’Huile plot) and 2% Meunier (from the Les Cormonts plot, planted in 1964). Its unusual vinification involves infusing whole Meunier grapes added at the end of the Chardonnay fermentation, a technique that lends delicate floral notes and a pale pink hue without prolonged maceration. It is aged in oak barrels on its lees for 24 months, disgorged, then kept in the cellar for six months before shipping.

Les Caourdets (Blanc de Blancs, Extra Brut): The Les Caourdets cuvée comes from the Beaunay plot of the same name, planted with Chardonnay in 1984 (41B rootstock). The soil is worked only beneath the vine rows; the rest is protected by natural ground cover made up of local plants. As with the other cuvées, fermentation begins spontaneously in barrels thanks to native yeasts, and the wine ages on its lees for at least 11 months, without fining or filtration. The cuvée consists mainly of a single harvest, complemented by a perpetual reserve started in 2015 with grapes from the same plot. It expresses a taut, mineral profile characteristic of this part of Beaunay.

Les Bas Vigny (Blanc de Blancs, Extra Brut): Made from the Les Bas Vigny plot, planted with Chardonnay in Beaunay in 2007, this champagne comes from vines whose soil is worked only at the base, with the rest protected by a spontaneous cover of local plants. Only copper, sulfur, and fermented plant extracts are used to protect the vines, with careful respect for the plot’s balance. Vinification follows the same rigorous protocol as the other cuvées: spontaneous fermentation in barrels and at least 11 months of aging on the lees, with no additive other than a small amount of sulfur after fermentation. A perpetual reserve started in 2015 complements each release.

Beaunay Rouge (Coteaux Champenois, red): A rare, small-production cuvée, Beaunay Rouge is a red Coteaux Champenois made from 100% Pinot Noir grown in the Les Hautes Sources Souris plot in Beaunay (vines planted in 1990). Its vinification differs from that of the sparkling cuvées: five days of cold maceration followed by 13 days of warm maceration, with 20% of the grape seeds removed and 10% of the ripe stems retained to add structure and complexity. The wine is then aged for 11 months on its natural lees in 228-liter oak barrels. Production is extremely limited. This still wine offers finesse, length, and a certain mineral restraint, supported by noticeable but integrated tannins.