by David Rose

by David Rose

There are times one must revive the past so as to appreciate the future. This often holds true when talking about modern-day boat building.

Take Fratelli Aprea Sorrento 1890, for example. It was 130-plus years ago, 1890 to be exact, when a master shipwright — the first of six boat-building generations of the Aprea family — started creating legendary craft in Sorrento, Italy.

The Apreas weren’t your average craftsmen, but artists when it came to meticulously creating their wooden vessels. The same holds true today.

While the boats they currently build have been refined with present-day materials, the unique hull design, as well as being particular about every minute detail, have been passed on through the generations.

The boats they were designing and painstakingly crafting by hand more than a century ago were known as gozzo-style — the nautical definition of the word gozzo being “a fishing boat, with oars and sometimes a small sail.” Like most rigs of that era, these were working-class boats built for a specific job; in this case, gozzo boats were not only constructed to get fishermen out to sea without harm, but more importantly, back to shore safe and sound when the weather turned.

A gozzo’s hull is designed to dig into big seas, displacing water rather than riding over its surface. What they lack in speed they more than make up for in a smooth, unwavering ride in roiled surf.

The weather on the day I was able to take three of the Fratelli Aprea models for test runs started out less than favorable for finding out firsthand what the hull of a gozzo was meant to do. Nearly the last day of summer, the sun’s rays gleamed through a cloudless, azure sky, and a light breeze barely blew a ripple across the lake’s surface. That changed in the hull’s test-run favor, however, later that afternoon.

Affixed to one dock of the small, private harbor on Michigan’s Lake Charlevoix were the Fratelli Aprea 780 and 750 awaiting my arrival; on the other side of the marina was the Sorrento 32 Hardtop (HT). This inland lake alone is a huge body of water but it’s also directly connected to Lake Michigan, where I would hopefully be able to put these boats through their wavy paces.

The first thing that crossed my mind before stepping barefoot into the first boat, the 780, was the nostalgic look of all three vessels. This was appropriate for the waterway we were on. Due north across the lake was the shoreline another famous angler from a similar time frame, Ernest Hemingway, spent time at during his younger years. More than likely, Hemingway may have seen these boats in action firsthand when he was in Italy during World War II, as well as during his other adventures there. Fitting, to say the least. But the hulls of yesteryear were wooden, not reinforced fiberglass like today. Nevertheless, you’d never know by looking at them.

The Fratelli Aprea 780 traditional gozzo best emulates the original fishing vessels, with a length of 7.85 meters (25-plus feet) and a beam of nearly 9 feet. While the oars and sails have been replaced with a 125-hp diesel engine and bronze prop, the rig looks as if you’d stepped back in time with a wooden mast that now holds a Bimini top.

Another unique feature is piloting. Rather than a wheel, the 780 is steered with a wooden tillersteering rudder, also giving this boat a novel but familiar sensation. While not a speedster, this boat has a comfortable cruising speed of 14 knots and a top speed of 16 knots.

Overall, the 780 open is the ideal deckboat with the openness of a pontoon boat. Instead of an abundance of room for fishing nets, as originally designed, the spacious interior is now surrounded by luxurious Burmese decking for sprawling out and taking in the sun or gazing at a starlit sky. And if an overnight stay is in order, there’s plenty of bedding below, as well a galley for breakfast in the morning.

Along similar lines, the Sorrento Gozzo 750 Open Cruise — just over 24.5 feet in length and with a beam just over 9.5 feet — has a slightly more contemporary feel with its central steering console and wheel. Available with single or twin diesel options, the 750 reaches cruising speeds of 18 and 20 knots, respectively. Both options max out at 24 knots.

Our search for larger waves commenced on the 17,260-acre inland lake, and we were able to cut the wake of a few cabin cruisers. The gozzo hull split and slid through without as much as feeling a single nudge.

Now in the Sorrento 32 HT, we headed toward Lake Michigan across the length of the inland lake. A quick stop for a bite to eat showed me just what a head-turner these Italian-made craft really are. Docking at the public marina took longer than normal as quite a few folks stopped to gaze and ask questions. For an area with some amazing vessels coming to port daily, the elegance of this boat that seemed to have teleported here from the past really stood out.

A southwest wind finally started kicking up as we headed for the big lake. Right away the 2-foot waves were turning into 3-footers. But it felt as if the seas were calm, even when running at max speed of 32 knots. Then we motored around the main point, 3-footers were turning into fours, with a few that looked as if to be reaching five. The gozzo-style hull did its job. There was no lunging or surging going with or against the seas, and it felt as if there was an auto-pilot engaged, the boat never losing course. When paralleling the surf from either side, there was no rocking; the deck remained horizontal to the horizon the entire ride.

I wouldn’t have wanted to be out there at that moment in any other boat. And come to think of it, we were the only craft in sight.

You’re not seeing things It would be impossible to tell every little particular that’s painstakingly applied to each Fratelli Aprea Sorrento 1890 boat without this turning into a novel. But when you climb aboard, there’s more to the details than might meet the eye.

The brightwork? Split from one solid piece of mahogany, cured and milled in-house, its wood grain mirrored from one side of the ship to the other. The cabinetry below? Again, grain matching perfectly from top to bottom. Every piece of material, from seating to bedding? Hand stitched by the artists themselves.

To say Fratelli Aprea boats are unique is an understatement. There’s generations of family pride and craftsmanship involved. They’re not just charming, but evoke emotion. H

For more information on these models, reach out to Fratelli Aprea Sorrento 1890 USA, based on Lake Charlevoix, Michigan. 313-908-3818