Mochi 51 Dolphin, a surprising Italian-style lobster boat

While driving from Florence to the Adriatic port of Cesenatico, Italy, some weeks ago, I spent a fair amount of time thinking about and anticipating my upcoming sea trial of the Mochi Craft, Mochi 51 Dolphin. Having tested several other vessels of the same type, from stateside builders like San Juan, Rivolta, and Hinckley, I was interested in seeing exactly what the Italian take on a New England-style lobsteryacht might be. The level of finish in the interior is high, and outdoorsy living is the obvious priority. More specifically, by opening both the glass slider at the back of the saloon on the starboard side and the fold-up window to port, the saloon/galley/helm area becomes part of the cockpit. This lets them join the cockpit’s giant, hydraulically actuated sunpad/lounge that levitates out of the sole, and its BBQ pit and wet bar that are contained within a single console unit on the starboard side. Mix these kinds of amenities with a serious Bose stereo system in the saloon and an Aquos flat-panel TV that rises via push button from a credenza there, and you’re looking at some extreme sun-and-fun potential. The Mochi 51 Dolphin has numerous custom-built parts, among them cleats, fairleads, and a solid-sculpted stainless steel bow chock.

A couple of things impressed me as soon as I began leaning on the MAN electronic engine controls. First, the Dolphin’s top speed of 41 mph was sporty and well within striking distance of the performance parameters of stateside lobsteryachts—a tribute to a straightforward, nicely designed deep-V hull form with a 19-degree transom deadrise and slightly convex bottom sections. Second, the boat tracked well, even down-sea, and she turned sweetly, if broadly—again tributes to a well-designed, well-balanced hull. And third, our Dolphin ran softly, dryly, and solidly in the six-footers the Adriatic was tossing our way, thanks in part to a construction regime that includes foam-cored glass stringers and transversals, glass-bonded bulkheads, and a hull-to-deck joint that’s riveted, siliconed, and glass-bonded where feasible. But playtime was the real hunkered-down kicker. With the side windows open, the slider in the hardtop drawn back, and the whole dang Adriatic, clear to Croatia, in the offing, I put the Mochi 51 Dolphin through a great big pile of figure-eights, U-turns, and downsea beelines—and the test boat performed like a sea-chompin’ champ every time.

The galley of the Mochi 51 Dolphin has marble countertops, a 1950’s-style refrigerator, and an Alpes-Inox sink. Leather upholstery, a pale-teak decor with satin finish, Ultraleather overhead, and solid, raised-panel cabinet doors highlight the saloon area. Crisp joinery lines augment the master. All doors are gasketed to nix rattles.

Notice the cool A/C plenums at the 51’s helm and the joystick at right for the Sidepower thrusters.

Mochi 51 Dolphin interiors: Hip, Slick, and Cool.

Report on this sea trial.

Source: “Power and Motor Yacht“.