THE INVERTED BOW, AND THE TRANSOM, BOTH WITH A SLIGHT TILT BACKWARDS OF A FEW DEGREES. The low, sleek deckhouse. The redan steps that feature on the sides just above the waterline. An imposing sail plan and the maximum beam set well back, nearly as far as the taffrail.

The new Maxi Dolphin is most definitely beautiful. At the yard based in Erbusco, it is said to be a “comfortable cruiser and a powerful racer”, and that is a very apt description of this nineteen-metre boat by Alejandro Bottino, a designer who may be young yet already has a long CV and deep understanding of our market. «The nice thing about the MD62ab is how it successfully it combines beautiful external lines with large volumes in the interior rooms», explains the Argentine designer. That isn’t an easy balance to achieve and is the outcome of a fortunate encounter between the talent of Bottino as a designer and the long experience in building boats at Maxi Dolphin, which was founded in 1987 and has been run since 2016 by MD Technologies.

Its distinctive qualities remain the same, starting with the ability to create semi-custom boats that are rigorously Italian-made and which can fully meet the requirements of its customers. In other words, the proverbial ability of Italian tailors of being able to make anything as well as possible has taken expressed in a sailing boat.

Another distinctive feature of the Maxi Dolphin is how light it is, a quality that has always been sought out, and determinedly so, by Maxi Dolphin starting from the first design phase and later in the choice of techniques and construction materials. The whole boat is made in sandwich layup carbon-epoxy fibre which is vacuum-laminated with a Corecell centre and then post-cured at 60 degrees centigrade in the yard’s 40-metre oven.

The solution applied in the interiors and with the furniture is the same one that has been used by the yard for some time, in which all elements are made using a light-weight sandwich technique. As well as not weighing very much, the distribution of the mass has been done extremely well and has made the boat fast and fun to sail. The rigging has been made in carbon fibre and of the 31-tonne total displacement, 8,500 are in the bulb keel which draws 3.4 metres. There is also a canting keel version available, which reduces the draught to 1.8 metres.

Luca Botter, the CEO of MD Technologies, said: «The MD62ab is the product of great teamwork. It is a semi-custom boat that is right up to date. It is simple and easy to handle. It has a sporty potential, but can also be enjoyed on a family cruise». With that in mind, the deck has been designed to be clear and functional, with a lot of free space behind the two twin wheels, while the entire transom folds down to create a spectacular beach area, which is also perfect for moving the tender around. Located separately, and forward of the helm there is a cockpit for manoeuvring, and one for guests – which is easily changed from a relaxation area into a dinette.

The design of the interiors, which is also the work of Alejandro Bottino working together with the yard’s technical department, is intentionally simple and functional, with an elegant choice of materials and colours: wood with bleached, horizontally-grained oak, light panelling and anthracite fabrics.

The first boat in the series has a large living area midships, at the bottom of the stairs, and side windows with also a sizeable amount of full-height glass. Using a solution that is often seen on big boats, the kitchen is a bit further forward, below the mast, and is slightly lower, while the entire bow area, with its a double cabin, bathroom and walk-in cupboard suite, is given over to the owner. Going aft, there are two traditional double rooms for guests, while there is a small room in the bow, with separate access, for the crew. It is all very simple, and all decidedly beautiful.