Having rolled bait since 1990 and having spent countless hours meticulously delving in to the science of carp, Dean really is the crème de la crème when it comes to bait formulation.

Sadly (or not, as the case may be for Dean) he has decided to close his business, Scientific Baits, for good).

In this episode we chat about Deans time in the bait industry and why he has decided to bring it to a close.

Available on all podcast apps as well as Spotify & YouTube.

If you would like to delve into the bait brain of Dean you can join us for an exclusive online evening via The Bait Club on the 5th of September at 8:30pm (don't worry, the replay will be available for all Bait Club members, no matter when you join the club).

For the evening with Stephen White (held on the 1st of August), please visit optibaits.com/club

A full replay of the event and much more is available for everyone who joins The Bait Club after the call date!

Enjoy...

The first in a new series!

Sam sits down with Stephen White and Dean Towey to cover a whole host of bait topics.

Enjoy...

We are back!

Sam sits down with Jake "The Heron" Hughes to discuss a broad range of topics from Jake's recent campaign all the way to bait, mental health, and crayfish.

Enjoy!

I am joined by big carp angler Dale Hatt to discuss numerous topics from mindset and motivation all the way to bait, tackle, and watercraft.

Dale has caught some very large carp and prides himself on the often overlooked art of watercraft as well as a stern work ethic and relentless determination.

Enjoy!

Part two of this winter's Q&A is here!

Slightly more in-depth than the last installment, I answer listeners' questions on broad-ranging subjects from motivation to finding fish and not to mention the Carp Chronicles staple topic- carp bait!

Enjoy...

This is quite an informal episode (aren't they all!) where I go through your questions in more of a quick-fire fashion. Usually I like to do longer podcasts so we can get into things in greater detail, unfortunately I just don't have time for that right now but I wanted to get something out for you guys. I know you don't like waiting too long for episodes!

In the upcoming second part of this Q&A, I plan to make the time to answer in much more detail.

I hope you enjoy this episode and feel free to submit questions for the upcoming Q&A episodes...

The second half of the recent interview with Stephen White is here.

Stephen continues to give his insights and theories on bait for big carp as well as talk time releasing attractors, nut nutrition, dealing with undertow, and numerous other aspects of this hobby we love so much.

Enjoy!

Mr Stephen White is back once again to share his fascinating theories on bait as well as his big fish captures of late.

In this instalment, Stephen talks about his angling and captures since appearing on the show two years ago. He then shares his theories on numerous bait subjects that are sure to get the grey matter ticking.

Enjoy!

Well, this one has been a long time coming!

Dean returns for the third time in this casual chat about bait and carp fishing.

Enjoy...

Jake 'The Heron' Hughes joins us for a carpy chat on big pit adventures, guesting nature reserves, run-ins with gypsies and a whole host of carpy chat. This is not one to be missed!

Sit back and enjoy...

Sam answers listeners' questions on a wide range of thought-provoking topics ranging from watercraft to bait and lots in-between!

Sam also chats with one of our long time listeners Ian about product development, Scottish carp fishing, Psychology and numerous other random topics.

Enjoy!

Does camouflaging our rigs really work? Do "match the hatch" hookbaits really match our free offerings? Are high viz popups really high viz?

Are we all wasting our time when it comes to this stuff?

James Nowell joins the show to reveal the way that carp see the world.

Spoiler alert- it's not what you think!

Deep into the 72-pint keg, we have a boozy chat about hydros, milk protein vs fish meals, preservatives, and a whole load more!

Enjoy...

What an episode!!!!

Pete & Sam travel to Daves private lake and work their way through a 72 pint beer keg whilst chatting all manner of things regarding carp bait, ingredients, attraction, and much more!

Pour yourself a cold one and enjoy...

Sam sits down with Ben in the BP milling pellet feed factory to discuss all manner of things to do with the science of carp and their watery home.

Ben Pinniger is a carp farmer, feed manufacturer, Sparsholt college graduate and carp fishing enthusiast.

Enjoy!

Sam & a hammered Pete sit back and reflect on fishing and life.

Merry Christmas and a very Happy New Year to you all!

Pete and a rather drunk Sam answer your questions and go on tangents in this catch-up episode.

Enjoy...

Basically this episode involves us getting drunk and waffling on about our recent captures, Bait Bros, seasonal edges, how to fish differently, and loads more!

Expect plenty of rants in this one...

Sam sits down with British Aqua Feeds main man Callum Wilson.

Callum has been with BAF since day one and has grown the company into one of the premier carp bait ingredient suppliers in the UK.

We talk about how you can make a better bait, what carp find attractive, base mix ingredients, hydrolysates, and much more!

Enjoy...

The long-awaited part two with Bill Cottam is finally here! Since our first episode with Bill, we have had an overwhelming amount of requests to release the second half of the recording, well here it is.

Enjoy!

Jason returns to discuss his incredible hauling run on his recent trip around France. His captures include some truly incredible , elusive fish.

He also answers some of our listener's questions as well as giving his ever-interesting views on bait.

Expect many tangents and fascinating subjects as we sit down with a few beers with the awesome Jason Rider...

It’s been a while but we are back to answer your questions which range from how to tackle new venues to baiting strategies and beyond. We also go over our current hookbait range and upcoming ingredient range.

And don't worry, we aren't going anywhere and we have some fantastic episodes coming in the near future!

Enjoy...

Dr Patrick Mills joins Sam to discuss his new findings on amino acids and how they stimulate carp to feed.

Patrick also shares insights of his new products at Biosource Baits...

What an incredible episode we have for you!

John Baker joins us to give a masterclass in flavours and carp bait. We cover many topics such as flavour science, what makes a flavour exceptional, flavour compounds, over-rated ingredients, shared recipes with Rod Hutchinson, how the famous scopex and monster crab came about, and so much more!

This is an absolute treat for anyone interested in choosing the right bait to catch the carp of your dreams.

Sit back and enjoy this very special episode with John Baker...

Bill Cottam joins us to talk about all manner of things involving bait and big carp! We cover classic recipes, big carp boilie formulation, essential oils, flavours, GLM, and so much more. Bill also opens up about his departure from Nutrabaits, which I am sure many of you want to hear.

Enjoy...

Part two of the awesome Stephen White interview is here! Expect much more bait talk in the sequel to Stephens enlightening first episode as he talks us through how to formulate bait to single out specific big carp.

Enjoy!

BCSG member Stephen White joins us to talk about how he targets huge carp from some of the UK's premier big fish waters including RH Fisheries Acton Burnell and Grenville. Stephen is highly educated on bait and shares some genuinely unique approaches to capturing his target carp.

Enjoy...

Sam & Pete discuss their own angling, bait making, their takeaways from recent guests, and release some exciting info!

Enjoy...

BP Milling owner Ben Pinniger joins us to talk all things carp science including bite times, natural food sources, carp feed formulation, optimising waters, strains of carp, aquaculture, algae blooms, fish breeding, Sparsholt College, bull seamen, and so much more.

This is absolute gold for anyone wanting to understand the life and habits of carp!

Julian is back to take us through the 90's!

We discuss many different aspects of his angling life such as nearly getting sued, his bait preferences, writing books, how he tacked his chosen carp venues as well as his time at Nash, Nutrabaits, Fox, and Daiwa.

As always, enjoy!

Julian Cundiff takes us on a journey through the 80's and shares how he got into carp fishing, how he went about catching monstrous double-figure carp (and maybe even a 20 or two!), how he was influenced by his surroundings,  who he met along the way and much, much more.

Sit back and enjoy a trip down Julian's memory lane...

Dr Patrick Mills talks about amino acids and how to include them in boilies for maximum effect. Patrick covers leak-off rate, attraction, taste, what works and what doesn't work, and much more.

First inspired by the writing of Kevin Maddocks, Patrick has gone on to make the study of amino acids his life's work. He has formulated key attractors in baits for several major companies over the years including Richworth and SBS.

Enjoy!

Jason is back for part two of his in-depth chat on carp flavours and other aspects of bait making. He also talks about his experiences carp fishing in America and Europe.

Enjoy!

Sit back and enjoy Julians bait journey spanning almost 4 decades...

In this episode we have the amazing Jason Rider. Jason owns carp bait company The A Bait and has worked in the industry for many years. He has worked alongside Gary Bayes from Nash Bait as well as Bob from RD Cambell who created the legendary tutti frutti!

This is part 1 of our chat with Jason, we hope you enjoy listening to it as much as we enjoyed recording it!

Sam & Pete pour themselves a drink and shoot the breeze on fishing, bait, equipment, and more.

Enjoy!

We reflect on the previous year and basically have a chat about our carp angling.

Merry Christmas!

We welcome back Shaun Harrison to discuss all manner of interesting topics such as fishing extreme depths, cooking in the great outdoors, fishing in weed, tackle innovations, bait application, being held at gun-point and much, much more!

As always, enjoy...

He's back by extreme demand! We have an absolute monster of a chat with carp bait expert Dean Towey. This episode is crammed full with both carp and bait science.

Enjoy!

Sam and Pete relay some of their stories from the past, both spooky and hilarious! Expect some crass boys-talk in this episode!

What an incredibly important episode we have for you. Joss is the fishery advisor for the UK Wild Otter Trust, former PAG board member, one of only 5 licensed live otter trappers, and a life-long angler.

We cover the ins and outs of protecting fish from predation, how to read the subtle signs of an otters presence, the law surrounding protecting a fishery from predation, and so much more.

As always, enjoy...

We answer your questions! Tactical edges, seasonal changes, gaining advantages, and much more...

Sam has a chat with Andy Parr of Deeper Sonar & Mistral Baits to discuss all things sonar and other tech within fishing.

There's no doubt that using sonars and other technology in fishing is becoming more and more prevalent. Does this take some of the magic out of fishing? Or are we being foolish for not taking advantage of the advances in modern tech? We discuss...

We sit down with the Founder of the Wild Carp Trust to chat about carp heritage, lake hunting, traditional tackle, adventures, and much more. Fennel also touches upon his friend, the great Chris Yates, and the Golden Scale Club.

Enjoy!

The highly talented angler and author Stuart Brookes shares some very special angling stories from the iconic Savay and the much-whispered-about Chimneys.

Sit back and enjoy a proper anglers account of some incredibly special captures on some incredibly special waters...

What an episode we have for you today. This is definitely one for those aspiring bait buffs or to be honest, anyone wanting to catch more carp!

We sit down with bait guru Dean Towey to talk in-depth about what makes the very best carp bait, how we can get carp ethically addicted to our boilies, what attracts carp, feed stimulants, taste enhancement, amino acids, nucleotides, essential oils, hookbaits, and SO much more!

Sit back and enjoy...

New waters, bait recipes, change in seasonal approach, technology, and much more.

Sit back and enjoy the carpy ramblings of Sam & Pete...

We answer listener questions on how to formulate boilies and liquids, pre-baiting, birdlife, flavours, oleoresins, essential oils, base mixes, favourite ingredients, and so much more to help you catch those special carp.

Sit back and dig around for the nuggets of gold...

Tommy "The Gun" Bishop joins Sam for a few tales from the bank...