Golden Grilse
Hook: Partridge Salar Gold size 5-13. Thread: Red.
Tail: Mixed yellow, blue, red and orange squirrel.
Butt: None required.
Body: Flat holographic gold tinsel, ribbed with fine gold oval.
Wing: Orange squirrel with purple Arctic runner over, with 4 strands of pearly Twinkle.
Hackles: Orange saddle cock with red wound in front.
* The shade of purple must not be too dark; it has to show up in the water.

Grilse Fly
Hook: Partridge Salar silver single or double, size 5-13. Thread: Black.
Tail: Mixed bunch of yellow and orange squirrel with 3-4 strands of Pearly Twinkle.
Butt: Fluorescent green floss.
Body: Silver holographic tinsel, ribbed with silver oval.
Wing: Yellow squirrel with orange over, then a few strands of pearly Flashabou, with some purple Arctic runner (Icelandic pony) over the top.
Hackle: Yellow followed by a rich deep purple cock saddle hackle.

We use a lot of purple flies in Ireland - the Bishop is the classic case in point, and the Mourne Purple & Gold Shrimp is well-known as an effective fly, especially for late-running fish. On a neighbouring river, the Fauchen Purple has become a popular fly and done a lot of damage. The original pattern sported a claret hackle, but I found that a purple one increased its attractiveness to salmon. It's no coincidence that many Irish salmon flies contain purple, the use of this colour in flies extends way back to the Butcher, a classic full-dressed salmon fly. The Purple Bug, with a pheasant breast feather wound at the tail in classic Irish style has proved a good mid- to late-season pattern, again particularly in clear water. In Ireland, purple materials incorporated into salmon flies seems to make perfect sense. Purple is the intermediate colour between red and blue, both of which are successful salmon colours, and it stands out well in bright sunlight; it seems to gain something under brightly lit conditions which really shows off the colour.

However, cross the Irish Sea, to England, Wales or Scotland, and try finding a salmon pattern that incorporates purple into the dressing. For some reason, purple dressings for salmon in Great Britain don't get much air-play, certainly when compared to the frequency that Irish salmon fly fishers use them. I wonder why? They are, after all, aimed at the same species of fish which have swum home from the same feeding grounds at sea. I'm sure there’s scope for experimentation on British rivers; there's already evidence that purple will work over there. For instance, the Purple Peewit was a very successful fly which also worked well in Scotland and there’s also records of purple being a very popular colour for a time on the Cumbrian rivers. I believe purple should work really well in Scotland. Why not throw more purple into the salmon fishers' mix?

It was just that thought that had me adding a hint of purple when I designed the Grilse Fly. It didn't have that name when I originally designed it; actually I was thinking primarily of early season fish when I concocted it at the vice, although I was aware that purple seems to be attractive to salmon later in the season.

Having tied the fly, one of my friends took a liking to it and used it to good effect, taking two grilse on it. Soon he was back, asking for another 'grilse fly', and so it was named. In essence, it's a purple Cascade.

I get excited by using holographic tinsel as a salmon fly body. Tie a multi-colour wing and all the colours are mixed and reflected from the holographic body in a twinkling, sparkling, lively spectrum of colours. It magnifies and multiplies the colour built into a fly. I think this is important; just as the classic tyers of old liked to incorporate myriad colour into their exotic creations from tropical birds, so the holographic tinsel can replicate this effect in a kaleidoscopic way.

Four inches down
The Grilse Fly is fished so it swims about four inches below the surface - not too high, but not too low either. Allow the light to pick up the wing and hackle colours and reflect off the body. Use either a sink-tip or a floater with a long leader to cut the fly through the surface and keep it swimming, just under, at a steady, shallow depth. Purple shows up best in bright light, so try this fly when it's sunny. You might opt for a full intermediate line at the fast neck of a pool where you suspect summer grilse may be gathering. It is particularly successful in spring and summer as the colours are not only right for grilse, but also spring running fish.

Fish it on a single or double, but tie it on a silver hook, as this brightens up the whole fly and adds to the flashy, sparkling effect.

Size, of course, depends on water temperature and water height. The higher the temperature, the smaller the fly, the higher the water, the larger the fly.

Reports on the Grilse Fly are very good. It has worked very well on the Finn springers, and Mourne and Strule grilse in the north, and the Drowse and Derg to the south. The Bann, too, has succumbed to the Grilse Fly's charms.

The silver-finished Partridge Salar double is perfect for this job, and I tie it in a range of (odd) sizes 5-13. The green butt is a trendy addition to this Irish fly. All Irish flies seem to be developing green arses at the moment, and my Grilse Fly couldn’t escape the current vogue. The initial idea came across from the continent and was soon popular on trout flies, but the idea has stuck and blossomed into the area of salmon flies, too.

For the hackles I opt for Chevron's cock saddle hackles. These are rich in colour and provide plenty of movement when wound at the head.

A good fly, the Grilse Fly, but not quite as successful as its younger sister. The Gold Grilse has out-done it already, and by the end of the season was becoming a firm favourite and building a reputation. Initially, I wanted an addition to the Grilse family, producing a gold-based pattern to complement the silvery Grilse Fly. From the success of the famous Curry's Gold Shrimp, I knew that a glittery gold body was attractive to salmon and I liked the effect of gold working in harmony with red, particularly when the gold comprises multi-reflective, light shattering holographic tinsel. Thus the fly was destined to be based on a gold holographic body combined with some red, with still that element of purple showing in the wing. Again, the Salar hook adds to the whole effect of the fly, only this time the option is for the gold finish rather than silver.

The tail is a whole mixture of colours, again influenced by those classic salmon tyers of old who used exotic natural feathers as a means to incorporate lively colours, but they never had holographic tinsel to reflect and signal those colours through the water.

The Gold Grilse fishes all the way through the season - spring fish, grilse and autumn fish have all succumbed to its charms. Again, for most of the time it is best fished so it tracks just under the surface, but this one has the option to be fished a bit deeper later in the season, as staler fish tend to move to purple. Use a sink-tip at the tail of a pool in late season and the Gold Grilse should bring you a result.

The Gold Grilse has really taken off in my area this season [2008]. It has quickly gained a reputation and has become a best seller. Everyone is looking out for it, and the salmon are, too!