A few years ago I had an exceptional winter barbel campaign, catching lots of barbel including some very big fish to over 17lb the successful bait that winter was a paste bait, based around a creamy caramel flavour.

Sadly the flavour is no longer available, I have tried a few which were similar but none have matched the catching power of the original.

That was until a few weeks ago when Sonubait guru Ian Day stuck a bottle of the new F1 liquid under my nose for a sniff, aimed as an addition to the all ready very popular F1 range of pellets and groundbait this sweet smelling liquid could be just what I have been looking for.

With the rivers being out of sorts for a week or two I haven’t been out much other than a couple of chub trips on the Wensum I have used my spare time to catch up on some writing  and photography work that needed doing.
When the opportunity came of a few days on the Severn with the chance of a bit of barbel fishing thrown in I was packed and on the way in just over an hour. Crossing the river at Bewdley I liked what I saw about 12ft of chocolate coloured flood water, which usually spells one thing, barbel.

After making sure the wife was warm and comfortable I ventured out to the river to be greeted by some wild and wet conditions and the river only inches short of bursting its banks but apparently dropping off slowly. The news wasn’t so good amongst the bank side telegraph with 4 anglers out on the stretch and not a barbel between them.

Rather than make a paste with the F1 liquid I decided to scald a few pellets and add a good helping of the creamy smelling liquid, the soften pellet mix was then jammed into a cage feeder not unlike a method mix. What better to go with a creamy attractant than a strawberry hookbait with two strawberry “S” pellets  on a hair rig under the hook, just before casting I gave the strawberry pellets a good glug in the F1 liquid, who can resist strawberries and cream even on a cold windswept river bank? The barbel certainly couldn’t the bait hadn’t been in the river more than 2 minutes when after a good thump the rod top nodded to the tune of a hooked fish.

With the first one landed and returned it wasn’t long after that another followed, I finished the afternoon with 4 landed and a hook pull on a fifth. Walking off the bank just before dark I was more than happy with the result, meeting up with the other anglers in the car park had them reporting not a bite between them, and some quizzical looks when in reply to the “what did you catch on” question, I reported “strawberries and cream”