SPECIAL FLIES FROM MAURO RASPINI
With the excellent imitations by Mauro Raspini you will outsmart even the most suspicious fish
The PHY fly series “Match the Hatch” by Mauro Raspini has been developed for demanding fly anglers who are searching for highly realistic imitations for difficult and heavily fished waters. These special flies imitate natural insects and their different life stages with exceptional precision – a crucial factor when targeting selective trout and grayling. Mauro Raspini considers fly tying a true art form and combines historical patterns with modern entomological knowledge and decades of practical fly-fishing experience. His expertise is reflected in every single fly of the PHY series. The carefully selected assortments are supplied in practical boxes including entomological information, offering fly fishing at the very highest level for passionate anglers.
PHY – MATCH THE HATCH
REALISTIC FLY PATTERNS FOR SELECTIVE TROUT AND GRAYLING
The PHY – MATCH THE HATCH series by Mauro Raspini was created for demanding fly anglers who fish challenging waters around the world, where trout and grayling have become highly selective. In crystal-clear rivers, spring creeks and slow-flowing streams, fish often have plenty of time to inspect an artificial fly. If the imitation fails to match the natural insect closely enough, it will often be refused.
In these situations, realistic imitations, the correct stage of the insect's life cycle and a natural presentation become the key to success. Every fly in the PHY series has been developed with exactly these demanding conditions in mind.
MATCH THE HATCH – IMITATE THE NATURAL HATCH
Fly anglers who take an interest in aquatic entomology quickly discover that identifying insects by more than just size or colour opens up entirely new possibilities on the water. Understanding insect families and their different life stages allows you to choose the fly that most accurately matches what fish are feeding on at that particular moment.
Match the Hatch is one of the fundamental principles of modern fly fishing. It means selecting an imitation that faithfully reproduces both the insect species and the specific stage of development currently available to feeding fish. This philosophy forms the foundation of the PHY series.
THE PHILOSOPHY BEHIND THE PHY SERIES
In the following words, Mauro Raspini explains the ideas and inspiration behind the PHY series:
Fly fishing is inseparably connected with the fascinating world of aquatic organisms. As fly anglers, we strive to imitate these insects as faithfully as possible, presenting the exact life stage that fish are feeding on. The more demanding this challenge becomes, the greater the satisfaction when everything comes together perfectly.
Of course, other fish instincts such as territorial behaviour and aggression should never be overlooked. These natural responses can also be used successfully, particularly when streamer fishing. Nevertheless, for me they remain secondary. Catching fish at any cost has never been my objective. When a fish mistakes one of our carefully crafted artificial flies for the real insect, it gives that imitation life for a brief moment—and that feeling is beyond measure.
The pursuit of perfection in technique and tactics is important, but artificial flies themselves remain the purest expression of our passion. I regard fly tying as an art form, comparable to painting or architecture. The great historical fly patterns deserve to be preserved while being reinterpreted with modern materials and contemporary tying techniques whenever this enhances their effectiveness.
More than thirty years spent with a fly rod on rivers around the world, together with the study of countless historical books on fly tying, have profoundly shaped my work. These experiences eventually led me to write "The Fly – La Genesi", documenting more than 500 fly patterns from the history of fly fishing.
In my illustrated volume "The Fly – Sacro e Profano", I further developed 105 of the most successful classical fly patterns using modern tying techniques and materials wherever meaningful improvements could be made. Together they represent the ten most important European aquatic insect families, with every significant life stage included, from the nymph to the spent spinner. From my perspective, the PHY series represents the very essence of fly fishing.
Mauro Raspini