Green Proving To Be The Ticket For Salmon

By John Albrich | 06/16/2013

Where I live in Lewiston, Idaho, is 465 miles from the ocean. Being so far from the saltwater, people don’t believe we have a herring bite this far upriver. Meanwhile, every springer hooked on my boat in the short window we had for our springer season was caught on green Fire Brined cut plugged and whole herring.

Contrary to some beliefs herring does work this far inland. And, the last few weeks have been great because I was the only one who had green herring. As new as this color (green) is to the Fire Brine lineup you still can’t find it around here. (Luckily, I have a good buddy at the factory.) The green helped me score easy limits everyday during our limited season.

While last season I mixed chartreuse and blue Fire Brine to obtain green and green Kokanee Fuel prior to that, the new green Fire Brine has boasts a deep, dark, vibrant green that holds it’s color extremely well, even with the river ripping. Keep in mind, spring flows on the Clearwater bring 30,000 to 40,000 cfs and the color didn’t bleed out of the herring, which speaks volumes.

It’s true some guys don’t believe in herring around here, but I wasn’t the only one fishing herring. However, others were using herring that wasn’t brined and dyed. We out-fished them. There’s a lot of value in a well brined herring.

I’m confident that brining your herring any color increases your odds. It helps firm your bait, which keeps it spinning longer, particularly in these faster flows we are forced to contend with this time of year. The new green is my favorite, but I also use blue and the chartreuse that has the UV added.

During spring season here in Idaho I was fishing in what we call “The Pond”. We aren’t trolling. We are sitting on anchor and dropping herring behind a flasher. We use a three-foot dropper and 12 ounces of lead to get it down and hold it in the current. The reason we use the long droppers is in the lower river there’s a mud layer and we need to keep the baits just above that layer.

The Albrich Green Brine Recipe

Step 1: Obtain fresh, good quality herring. The fresher, the better. I prefer Green Label herring.

Step 2: Cut hole in package of herring. I do this to thaw them a bit before pouring them into my brine. This way I don’t lose any scales off the herring.

Step 3: Create mixture. Pour a bottle of green Fire Brine into container. I use a sealable Rubbermaid container to prevent spilling. In addition to the Fire Brine I add the following contents. You don’t have to do this, but it’s my preference to add more salt and scent.

*One cup of salt. I use Morton Canning and Packing Salt.

*One teaspoon of Liquid Krill or Fire Power.

*Eight to 10 drops of pure anise oil.

Step 4: Mix well to break up salt before adding herring. Once mixed, add herring to mixture.

Step 5: Place sealed container in bait fridge. Let soak for 10-12 hour for best results. It’s important to keep the bait cold to make sure they stay firm.

Editor’s Note: John Albrich will be packing the new green Fire Brined herring with him to the Washington Coast this week to chase Chinook in the ocean.