It has today been brought to our attention, that all of our news items have disappeared from the website!

Anyway, Mike will be off to Japan on January 28th, and will also be attending the Momotaro auction on the 2nd of February. Please visit the Momotaro website to see the Koi that will be offered up for sale. As you are already no doubt aware, our understanding of Momotaro bloodlines is absolutely second to none, so if you have any interest in any of the Koi, please contact us. Momotaro Auction

Nothing to do with the Japan trip, I know, but two weeks ago we received a package of calendars from Omosako. We have 30 of these left to give away, and are available on a first come, first served basis. If you wish, I can put one aside for you to collect when I return from this trip.

Best regards,

Mike.

Yes, it's that time of year! On Monday morning (12th October) I will be flying out to Japan, where I will reside until the 19th of November. The Autumn trip for Yume Koi is always a long one, because we don't just go out there in search of 'any old Koi', we go out in search of only the very finest, and from excellent Jumbo bloodlines. This means often having to go back to breeders repeatedly to see certain harvests, so that we can choose before anyone else even sees the Koi!

As you are no doubt aware, Yume Koi's reputation is built solely on selling Koi that can grow to Jumbo, and then making sure that the owner can achieve the Koi's full potential, with many of our customers Koi now having been grown in the UK from Tosai or Nisai, to 80+cm, and several to 90+cm. These achievements have earned us a fantastic reputation amongst breeders, and this is why we so frequently managed to obtain many breeders 'Kashira' (literally the absolute best single fish of the season). Such Koi as these are more often than not hidden away in secret fish houses, where they are offered to clients on an 'invitation only' basis. 

The breeders who's Kashira we have sourced in the past, include... 

Igarashi
Matsue
Momotaro
Okawa
Omosako
Takeda
Takigawa
Yamamatsu
Yamatoya

The breeders I will be visiting this Autumn, will include (Niigata area) Dainichi, Hoshikin, Igarashi, Murata, Yamamatsu. (Chugoku area) Matsue, Momotaro, Omosako, Takeda, Yamatoya. (Kyushu area) Okawa, Ueno.

On the 18th of November, I will also be attending Momotaro's auction. Having been buying from Momotaro since 2000, and having spent three consecutive Summers at Momotaro learning about breeding/culling, we are in an unrivaled position when it comes to understanding their bloodlines development traits and possible pitfalls. If you have any interest in any of the Koi previewed on Momotaro's website please don't hesitate to drop me a line. 

We also have a new 'Videos' page, which can be found under the 'Media' menu. Please browse these at your pleasure. 

If you would like to get additional news updates whilst I am in Japan, please subscribe to our Newsletter, which can be found under the 'Media' menu.

Best regards, and most importantly... Enjoy! Mike. 

We would like to congratulate John Hellens, for winning Jumbo Champion with a Yume Koi Momotaro Sanke that we purchased as Tosai, and sold to John as Yonsai. John has raised her to around 92cm at 7 years old, and we think that she has a chance to become the first 1 metre Go-Sanke in the UK in the future.

Secondly, we would like to Congratulate Dave Dallison for winning Young Champion with a lovely Kohaku that we sold to him when low price Tosai of 23cm. He has grown her to 55cm, and she still has a rosey future ahead of her.

We would also like to congratulate Rob Robson for winning Baby Champion with a low price Tosai Kohaku. We also hope that Rob's Kohaku will fair well over the coming year or so with his excellent keeping skills.

The downside for us... We missed Adult Champion with a 'once in a lifetime' Kohaku that won a second in size at the All Japan Show this year. The general consensus at the BKKS was that this Koi was 'unbeatable', and many described her as the one Koi in the Show that they would like to take home. But, alas, she only got a third in variety. Hey ho, we can't be too gready! ;-)

For us, the BKKS National was excellent! We met many happy clients there, and hopefully picked up some new ones. It was for us, one of the most 'fun' nationals we have ever had.

The water at the Show was up to its usual high standard, though I have heard comments that the pH was too high, and that surely water could have been 'tanked' to the Show in better spec. This kind of train of thought is ludicrous, as the pH 'out of the tap' is irrelevant, as it is the KH and sunshine that will dictate the pH once in the vats. Even shipping in softer water would have made no difference. To my mind, the water team did an excellent job, and deserve gratitude rather than criticism.

As for the picture at the top of our newsletter, from left to right 'Jumbo Champion' 92cm Momotaro Sanke, 'Young Champion' 55cm Yamatoya Kohaku, 'Baby Champion' 31cm Kohaku, and our contender for 'Adult Champion' which won 2nd Best In Size in AJS 2009

The next bit of news, is in relation to the Momotaro auction on May 27th. I had a long sneak preview of these Koi last Saturday, and they really are wonderful, especially the Sanke. I have to say, that they look nothing like the photos that Momotaro have emailed. Some are far superior to these photos, and unfortunately, some are not as good. But, all in all, these, I think, are Momotaro's best auction Koi to date. If you have any interest in these Koi, please don't hesitate to drop me a line. Our extensive knowledge of their bloodline is second to none, having imported many of them since 2000, and watching them grow to up to 90cm+ in the UK. A nominal commission fee of 10% applies, but for this, you get extensive guidance of the Koi in question, and if we don't like the Koi in the flesh, we don't buy it just to get your commission!

Sorry for the lack of updates! I have just returned from an incredibly hectic trip to Japan, so busy, that I had no chance for doing a 'blog' for this one.

 However, it isn't all bad news! We have managed to source a handful of extremely high-class Tosai! We are in a very fortunate position, that the amount of business we do with our chosen breeders, is such that they are happy to let us have just a few of their very top Tategoi. This time, we had freedom to have the choice of each and every one of Takeda Koi Farm's Tosai, something that we have somewhat 'inherited' since Takeda-san passed away in 2007. Only one Koi ever was offered up for sale by Takeda-san several years ago, to a Japanese hobbiest. The Takeda Kohaku this time, were by far the best I have ever seen there, and this bloodline is a very famous one!

At Takigawa Koi Farm, we were allowed just two Tosai this time. But, we got the 'Kashira' from one breeding, and a second Koi from another main parent set.

We have also sourced five Yamatoya Tosai, having the complete run through our choice of two of his three Tategoi ponds. 

At Okawa Koi Farm, we have managed to get 7 of their Tategoi, which were also destined for the mud pond. These are incredibly large, and very high quality.

We also have sourced a handful of very nice Omosako Tosai.

To summarise, the photo below, is of the 'highlight Koi' of the trip. These Koi are ones we have bought without even having regard for price... they are quite simply, the absolute best!

If you have any interest in these new Koi, please drop us a line.

I am in Japan as of yesterday, in search of very special Jumbo Tosai. The numbers will be very limited, as the breeders do not wish to sell these Koi at all, and will only let us have them because of the amount of business we do at other times of the year with them. Keep a look out for new Koi in our 'Fish' pages, and email newsletters (assuming you are subscribed to them).

 Many thanks, 

Mike.

 

It's that time of year already! If you purchased one of our '2008 Tategoi Challenge Tosai last Spring/Summer, this is a reminder to rush out and take a photo of the Koi, and send it to us with the size. The size generally of the competing Koi, is between 50 and 57cm, so the competition is stiff! Some of the best ones sold after the closing date, some didn't sell at all, with some of these beig the best of the lot (not the most expensive), as predicted in the Tategoi Challenge article in Koi Nations Magazine. On my return from Japan, I will endeavor to visit and personally photograph as many of your Koi as possible prior to going back to Japan in April, so that the breeders can cast their vote, and you can choose your prize! This challenge was intended as an excercise in 'enlightenment' for clients and hobbyists. However, due to the popularity of is, we will be hold a 2009 Tategoi Challenge this year too!

 

Hi,

 Just to let you know, that Elisa and I have just returned from being away the last two weeks, and on Friday 20th, I will be off to Japan in search of Tosai, and also new breeders. I will also be visiting the Momotaro auction on 31st of March, so if you have any interest in any of the Koi on their website, please contact me. As you are already no doubt aware, we have had many clients grow Momotaro Koi (and other breeders) to over 80cm from Tosai in the UK, and as such, our experience and knowledge of their bloodlines (since 2000) is absolutely second to none. Please keep your eyes on the 'Blog' pages for day to day news during the trip.

We also have a clients Koi attending the 'Wakagoi' Show, which we hope will fare well, so please wish us luck! :-)

 

Hi,

If you have found your way to the new Yume Koi website, may I first say a big Welcome!, and also a thank you for taking the time to browse here.

I sincerely hope that you will find the new website more 'user friendly', more content-rich, and simpler to navigate that the old one. 

There are many more pages to be added over the next few weeks, and many more exciting features planned. So, please check back to see how the updates are coming on, and also let us know if there are any pages that you would like to see here?

 At Yume Koi, we now have 5 ponds, predominantly stocked with very high-end Koi. In fact, even if you are a Japan-trip veteran, you will be incredibly hard pushed to find as many Koi on your travels, as you would find right here in the UK, and if you are experienced, I think you will fully agree with this. But, in our quest to keep 'upping our game' we have inevitably grown on massive number of Koi, and are now in a situation, which we feel that you, the hobbyist, can benefit from... We are going to clear out a reasonable number of very good lower priced Koi over the next few weeks, mostly sub-£1000, and representing incredibly good value for money. So, please keep your eyes peeled for these Koi.

 I hope that this site proves to be everything you hoped it would.

 Best regards,

 Mike.