Red or Yellow? This Week’s Friday Night Koi Release
🔴 Red or 🟡 Yellow? This Week’s Friday Night Koi Release
Over 70 individually selected koi. Four striking varieties. And this week, there’s a definite colour theme.
We've harvested another of our growing-on ponds this week, and as we've worked through the koi, something of a colour theme has emerged.
Red or yellow?
On the red side, we have Hi Utsuri and Gin Rin Kohaku from Shinoda.
And on the yellow side, Ki Utsuri bred here at Byer Koi Farm, alongside Lemon Hariwake from Tanaka.
Red and black. Yellow and black. Yellow and white. Red and white.
There are just over 70 individually selected koi going into this Friday night's online release, available from 8pm.
Four colours, four very different looks
Find Your Favourites
With over 70 koi in this week's release, there's plenty to look through — but you don't need to watch every video or study every page.
Want the quickest look at the whole release?
Start with the priced catalogue. You'll see all 70+ koi individually, together with their reference, size, price and preview bowl number.
Found a koi you like?
Use its bowl number to jump straight to the matching preview bowl video and see it swimming.
Or, if you enjoy taking your time...
Explore the full release below, with our variety features, videos, 10 preview bowls and in-depth variety guides.
Prices start at £75, with most koi at £125 and a small number of specials at £145.
VIEW THE PRICED CATALOGUE | WATCH THE PREVIEW BOWLS
Why Yellow?
Why Yellow?
There's another reason we've gone to town on the red and yellow theme this week.
Yellow is an unusual colour to find as part of a pattern on a koi.
For many ponds, yellow is represented by a solid-coloured koi — perhaps a Yamabuki Ogon or Karashigoi. Both can bring a wonderful block of yellow into a collection, but varieties such as Ki Utsuri and Lemon Hariwake allow us to use yellow in a rather different way.
Instead of adding another solid colour, yellow becomes part of the pattern — paired with black in Ki Utsuri, or white in Lemon Hariwake. That gives the koi keeper considerably more freedom when thinking about the collection as a whole.
A Ki Utsuri can introduce yellow while visually linking to the sumi of a Showa or Shiro Utsuri. A Lemon Hariwake can introduce yellow while its white creates a connection with Kohaku, Sanke and other white-based koi.
And if you already have a solid yellow koi, it becomes more interesting still. A patterned yellow koi can pick up that colour elsewhere in the pond, tightening the visual link between individual koi and allowing yellow to run through the collection rather than belonging to just one fish.
It's something we're increasingly interested in at Byer Koi Farm — not simply choosing beautiful koi individually, but considering what each new koi can contribute to the overall composition of a pond.
Perhaps that's why the yellow koi caught our eye quite so much when we put this week's selection together.
Red & Black — Shinoda Hi Utsuri
🔴 Red & Black — Shinoda Hi Utsuri
Hi Utsuri is one of the classic Utsurimono varieties, combining black sumi with contrasting red hi.
These Hi Utsuri were bred by Shinoda in Japan and have been grown on here at the farm. There is a good range within this week's selection, with different balances of hi and sumi and plenty of individuality between the patterns.
Bold, dark and dramatic, Hi Utsuri make a striking contrast against the yellow koi elsewhere in this week's release.
🟡 Yellow & Black — Byer Koi Farm Ki Utsuri
Change the red for yellow and we arrive at Ki Utsuri.
These Ki Utsuri were bred here at Byer Koi Farm, from Japanese parent koi selected specifically for our breeding programme.
Ki Utsuri are one of the less commonly encountered traditional koi varieties. Their combination of yellow and black can be incredibly striking, while the development of the sumi means there can still be plenty to watch as younger koi mature.
Discover more about Ki Utsuri
We've produced an in-depth Ki Utsuri Variety Guide, looking at what makes the variety distinctive, what to look for when selecting one, pattern, sumi, motoguru and how Ki Utsuri can develop as they mature.
READ OUR KI UTSURI VARIETY GUIDE:
🟡 Yellow & White — Tanaka Lemon Hariwake
From yellow and black to something altogether brighter.
These Lemon Hariwake from Tanaka combine a metallic white base with contrasting lemon-yellow pattern.
The metallic skin gives them a very different character to the Ki Utsuri. Bright, clean and reflective, they're a variety that can really catch the eye as they move around a pond.
We've selected a range of patterns for Friday night's release.
🔴 Red & White — Shinoda Gin Rin Kohaku
And finally, perhaps the most recognisable colour combination in the koi world: red and white.
These Gin Rin Kohaku from Shinoda combine the simplicity of Kohaku with the sparkle of Gin Rin scales.
With only red and white to work with, Kohaku leaves very little room to hide. Skin quality, beni, body and pattern all contribute to the overall impression — and the addition of Gin Rin brings another dimension as the scales catch the light.
Discover more about Kohaku
Our comprehensive Kohaku Variety Guide takes a much deeper look at this cornerstone of Nishikigoi — including skin and beni quality, pattern, sashi, kiwa, body and how to assess Kohaku at different stages of development.
READ OUR KOHAKU VARIETY GUIDE:
🔴 Red or 🟡 Yellow?
Four very different interpretations of two colours:
🔴 Red & Black — Hi Utsuri
🟡 Yellow & Black — Ki Utsuri
🟡 Yellow & White — Lemon Hariwake
🔴 Red & White — Gin Rin Kohaku
There are over 70 koi in this week's release, individually photographed and listed for you to choose from.
This Week's Release Timeline
Here's how this week's release will unfold:
Wednesday evening – Release Preview
This page is now live, including our first look at the koi and all 10 preview bowl videos.
Thursday – Full Catalogue Published
Catalogue is not published. This gives you time to look through the complete selection and make a note of your favourites.
Friday at 8pm – Koi Go On Sale
The full release goes live on our website at 8pm. All koi are individually listed and available on a first come, first served basis.
At 8pm: be on our Koi for Sale page and refresh your browser. The newly released koi will then appear at the top of the collection.
Preview This Week's Koi
There are over 70 individually selected koi in this week's release. We've divided them across 10 preview bowls, giving you the opportunity to take a closer look before the koi go on sale.
Each koi will have its own unique reference number when the full catalogue is published, making it easy to identify your favourites from the preview videos.
Preview Bowl 1
Preview Bowl 2
Preview Bowl 3
Preview Bowl 4
Preview Bowl 5
Preview Bowl 6
Preview Bowl 7
Preview Bowl 8
Preview Bowl 9
Preview Bowl 10
RELEASE CATALOGUE
The catalogue presents all the koi included this week, allowing you to compare the selection and shortlist your favourites ahead of 8:00pm on Friday.
Friday Night Online Koi Release
The new koi go on sale Friday at 8pm.
We'll make the full preview available ahead of the release, so you'll have plenty of opportunity to look through the koi and make a note of your favourites.
At 8pm on Friday, head to our Koi for Sale page and refresh. The new koi will appear and will be available on a first come, first served basis.
Each koi will have its own photographs, video, size, breeder information and unique reference number.
So, for this week at least, there's one question to answer:
🔴 Red or 🟡 Yellow?
Friday. 8pm.
