On to what will probably be my last smoke of the night! This time around I'm trying out Cornell & Diehl Kelly's Coin, in a pretty little Rattray's Blower's Daughter.
In my first impressions mini reviews of Royal Yacht and Kendal Dark I said that they were pretty strong blends, but weren't going to put you on the floor. Kelly's Coin is a "put you on the floor" blend. As in, "Do not pass Go, do not collect $200 in SmokingPipes.com store credit, go straight to the floor." As far as strong Burley blends go, Haunted Bookshop and Old Joe Krantz have absolutely nothing on this stuff. Ten minutes of smoking was about all I could handle of Kelly's Coin before having to put the pipe down lest I risk nicotine sickness.
Now that we've gotten the strength out of the way though, what does it taste like? If you've ever had Pegasus then Kelly's Coin is quite similar, but substantially darker in the flavor department. It's a similar mix to Pegasus with Burley, a little Virginia, and a tiny bit of unsweetened Black Cavendish; but in Kelly's Coin the dark Burley is front and center and there to kick you up one side and down the other. It's deeply walnuty, gamey, barnyard'y, and would probably be extraordinarily unpleasant to anyone who doesn't have a taste for dark Burley. It's bordering on nasty, but in a good Burley way.
However, if you're the sort who enjoys that whole Pegasus/Haunted Bookshop/Old Joe Krantz family but wish you had something even darker tasting and with enough nicotine to tranquilize an above average sized rhinoceros then Kelly's Coin will likely be right up your alley. It's also surprisingly smooth on the retrohale with little to no sting, even smoother than Pegasus I'd say, but the throat irritating qualities that dark Burley can have for some people are definitely there in full force; moreso than in any other Burley blend I've ever had. After 10 minutes gently sipping little wisps of smoke from Kelly's Coin my throat is awfully sore and I feel like I could sure use a cough drop.
Ultimately this blend probably isn't going to be for me, since my throat seems none too fond of it, but the taste and strength would be quite nice for a Burley lover and I'd recommend fans of Pegasus, Haunted Bookshop, and Old Joe Krantz give it a try. Sissies need not apply.