HIGH SEAS

JOURNEYS

HIGH SEAS Going GOZZO

BUILT ON ITALY’S AMALFI COAST, FRATELLI APREA’S HANDCRAFTED CRUISERS ARE NOW AVAILABLE IN THE U.S.

BY HOWARD WALKER

Ah, bella Sorrento. Home of limoncello, gateway to Italy’s spectacular Amalfi Coast, and embarkation point for a quick ferry ride to the romantic island of Capri.

If you have been and are nautically inclined, chances are you’ve stood at the city’s walls and gazed down longingly at the fleet of brightly colored Sorrentino gozzo fishing boats bobbing gently in the harbor. Their design dates back to the nineteenth century, when they used oars and sails for power. Now their broad beams, stout wooden construction, trademark rounded transoms, and putt-putt engines have become synonymous with aquatic life along the Mediterranean.

In Sorrento, most of the gozzos tied to the docks will likely have been built by the Aprea family at their Fratelli Aprea shipyard in Marina Grande. Founded in 1890 by Cataldo Aprea, the yard is still turning out traditional gozzos for local fisherfolk.

In the late ’90s, however, the Apreas answered the call from families wanting a boat with the same seakeeping gozzo qualities but with a few more creature comforts. Think: a small cabin for post pasta-e-vino napping. The 26foot, tiller-steered Fratelli Aprea 780 was born.

The builder has since expanded its offerings to include a number of handcrafted, fiberglass-hulled cruisers ranging from a 25-foot center-console dayboat to a luxurious 50-footer. All are custom-built and each is assembled with a single-minded focus on quality and craftsmanship. And all are guaranteed to spin heads, drop jaws, and have onlookers burst into spontaneous applause at their very sight. That tall, beautifully flared bow, the ring of varnished planking around the hull, and that distinctive rounded stern with its oversize teak swim platform—these vessels all but definitively prove the notion that life’s too short to own an ugly boat.

Until now, Fratelli Apreas have only been available to European boaters. But after a toe-in-the water display at this year’s Palm Beach International Boat Show, the builder decided to bring its bespoke boats to the United States, operating out of a new HQ on Lake Charlevoix in Boyne City, Michigan.

Currently, the U.S. lineup kicks off with the truly gorgeous and family-friendly 25-foot Sorrento 7.50 center console. Featuring wraparound stern seating, a huge foredeck with a giant sunpad, and a compact cabin with a shower, head, and V-berth for overnighting, it’s a masterpiece of space and versatility. And in these days when so many boats look like floating Clorox bottles, the 7.50 is a poster child for la dolce

vita, with its acres of mirrorvarnished mahogany, sparkling stainless steel, and salty teak decks. Power comes from either single or twin 125hp Yanmar diesels—bigger, if you want—pushing the semidisplacement-hulled 7.50 to an 18-knot cruise speed or 22 flat out.

Need more space? Any one of Fratelli Aprea’s trio of 32-footers is perfect for big groups. Take your pick from the center-consoled 32 Open Cruise, the 32 Semi-Cabinatto with its wide foredeck sofa, or the 32 Semi-Cabinatto Hardtop with its protected-fromthe-elements enclosed steering. These all come with twin 320-hp Volvo D4 turbo-diesels on straight shafts that give a 26-knot top speed with 22-knot cruising.

The Aprea family’s latest offering in the U.S. is the Sorrento 36 Hardtop, which made its North American debut at the 2022 Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show. The big appeal here are the below-deck accommodations. There’s a forward master with a walk-around queen bed, a guest cabin with twin stacked bunks, and a drop-down salon table with cushions for an occasional double. With the 36, you can take your pick of Volvo-Penta, Yanmar, or MAN diesel power, with typical twin 590-hp motors giving around 30 knots and easy 24-knot cruising.

The gozzo look won’t be for everyone, nor will the time commitment required to maintain all that varnished teak. But for lovers of classic Italian style, these Fratelli Apreas are unmatched. Plus, outside of Sorrento, there’s no better place to quaff a glass of frosty limoncello. «

POWER FILE

PRICE: FROM $1.1 MILLION FOR 36 HARDTOP LENGTH: 35 FEET, 7 INCHES BEAM: 14 FEET, 6 INCHES ENGINES: 2 X YANMAR DIESELS POWER: 2 X 590 HP TOP SPEED: 30 KNOTS WHY WE LOVE IT: BECAUSE IT CAPTURES THE ESSENCE OF CRUISING THE AMALFI COAST.