2004 'Private Order' Raw Puerh

Obtained a full cake of this from a friend and very glad that I did.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BbGHR2AgiUL/?taken-by=liquidproust

This is the first raw puerh I’ve ever drank that had more than just that menthol feel… it had a minty taste. It is/was so unique. The tongue seemed cool and tingled after each sip with a nice sensation for at least 20-30 seconds. Fantastic feel and a decent texture to the liquid. Good dry age to this one at this point and I look forward to drinking the heck out of it this winter : )

2004 Private Order – Essence of tea

Price: £7 ($10.54) for 25g (28p ($0.42) /g)

8g in gaiwan.

76/100

Summary: Heavy smoke has become rounded and smooth, and the flavours are ok, but there is nothing special here. Average tea, heavy smoke has been aged, that’s all. Bacon smoky.

Note: I can’t find this for sale anymore.

Dry: Dark brown, flat chunk, med/high compression. Looks like 2000 Green Stamp… Smoky cheese aroma.

https://www.instagram.com/p/-11RCbIDvHX0H58ZiACf0hNrLE4J53f3t5IBg0

Rinse: Med golden brown.

Wet: Med smoky. Electric smoke and log burning smoke.

https://www.instagram.com/p/-19FqAIDuxyak_ED3waJ6ZnmXPQv4Qz6TpSlc0

10s – Med golden brown. Faint log burning smoke. Aftertaste is log burning smoke. Body is ok. Thin.

15s – Dense med golden brown. Another sheng from Essence of Tea with the bitterness worn down, and the smoke has softened. Both components are well integrated, but it is lacking bite. Thicker.

25s – Dense med golden brown. Slightly astringent grip; slightly drying. Log burning. Not as good as 2000 Green Stamp. A tiny hint of Beef Space Raiders….

30s – Med golden brown. Smoke is staying strong, but the tea is fading.

35s – Med golden brown. Very strong, thick smoke: it has softened, but it is still very heavy.

1 minute – Med golden brown. The smoke is well rounded and heavy, but the tea underneath is average.

1 minute 20s – Less dense. Med golden brown. Watery, base sheng with a tonne of smoke still.

I decided to get a full cake of this from Essence Of Tea about a year ago, and to be honest when I tried it I didn’t think too much of it. I felt it was good, but it did not excite me. It had a very good relaxing QI, but I felt it lacked a little on flavour and taste. I have never been disappointed with any of my purchases from David and knew that this puerh’s quality would eventually shine through. So, I decided to let it sit and have stored it for a year without going back to it. Tonight I felt like some semi-aged puerh and felt like revisiting it to see if there have been any changes. Well, I can happily say there are some BIG positive changes. Here are my notes…

I carefully used my puerh pick to get a nice 8 gram chunk from the cake. For tasting I have used a 130ml yixing and waited 5 minutes for the boiling water to cool down a little. A quick rinse and I smell the wet leaves…very malty, with balm-like qualities. The malty character is quite strong and dominates the aroma…it almost reminds me of when I used to live very close to a beer factory 20+ years ago. I am also detecting a mild aged aroma there in the background.

I do another quick rinse and then do my first proper steep at 15 seconds. As David states on his website this puerh starts out a little thinly and then begins to thicken…this definitely rings as true. I sip the amber liquid and smile…the year of storage has done wonders for the taste. I prefer savoury/bitter over sweet in my puerh, and the first thing I notice is the rich savoury/salty/malty taste. It hits my tongue at 100mph and dominates the first sip. There is the flavour that I felt was lacking a year ago.

Second steep for 30 seconds and now the amber liquid is really starting to thicken. Sipping the brew the mouthfeel is more robust and dense, the salty/savoury quality is still shining through very nicely. I am beginning to notice some interesting vibrancy on the tongue…a tingling sensation followed by a lovely coolness when I take a deep breath in. The QI I remember from this puerh is starting to develop nicely, relaxing my mind and body. This is the start of a great tea session.

2 hours later I am still sipping this wondrous brew and began to lose count of how many steeps I had done. It is still delivering on flavour and is still rich and robust. The salty/savoury overtones are still there however not as prominent, but I am now getting a nicely aged taste which is very pleasant. The QI has taken over and I am glued to my chair. Yet another amazing puerh experience.

So, overall I am stunned as to how much this puerh has developed and changed over a year. I personally think that this puerh is going to be perfect for long term storage. I would like to see more of the aged taste coming through in another 4-5 years. This puerh is great to drink now, but I think it will be exceptional with more patience and time.

From a price point I think this is a really good deal. I remember paying £72 for a cake of this a year ago and now checking on the EOT website it is still £72. I am really tempted to get another one and let it sit for 10 years. I am not the most patient person in the world, but this puerh deserves patience and time in order to reveal its full character. Many thanks to David at EOT for giving us a chance to try out this amazing, complex puerh.