No boat catches the eye quite as quickly as a natural-wood vessel like the NOX SV. Or so we thought. The new Heritage 9.9 from Italian shipyard Castagnola Yacht blends its natural wood aesthetic with a glossy black hull shell that gives away its secret ingredient: carbon fiber. The "Wood in Tech Skin" construction is designed to bring together the performance of carbon fiber with the rich, timeless look of wood ... and it catches the eye every bit as quickly as wood alone.
Castagnola Yacht chief Gabriele Maestri concocted the formula behind the 10-m (33-ft) Heritage 9.9, seeking to find just the right balance of grounded tradition and cutting-edge innovation. Enlisting the pens of Nauta Design and architectural services of Studio Names, Castagnola pursued Maestri's vision with a build method it calls Wood in Tech Skin (WTS), essentially coating the outside of the wooden deep-V planing hull with a thin layer of epoxy-infused carbon fiber.
By leaving the wood exposed on the other side, life onboard is as warm and pure as Mother Nature intended. Castagnola spills a little of that warmth over the sides with the teak siding of the gunwale.
Castagnola promises that the WTS construction makes the Heritage much easier to maintain than a traditional wooden boat while providing light, agile performance on the water. The wood, meanwhile, absorbs sound so things remain quiet even at top speed.
Conceived as a limited-range weekend cruiser or superyacht chaser, the Heritage 9.9 houses a single cabin with bathroom below deck near the bow. The vessel can be specified as a hard top, but the open version shown boasts an airy deck with a pair of sun loungers just fore of the aft swimming platform. A lounge with wraparound vis-a-vis sofas and adjustable table merges seamlessly with the compact cockpit tucked below the sleek windscreen. There's also a small galley with sink and cooktop.
To further enhance the classic wood looks, Castagnola declutters the wood dash panel, allowing it to serve as a natural canvas for an array of analog gauges. The larger digital screens and controls are housed below this panel.
The 6.5-ton Heritage 9.9 comes powered by a pair of 320-hp Yanmar engines equipped with pods. It cruises the water at 34 knots (63 km/h) and can hit speeds up to 40 knots (74 km/h). With its 500-L fuel tank, the Heritage journeys up to 160 nautical miles (296 km) at 30 knots (56 km/h).
Yacht brokerage Equinoxe International is handling Heritage 9.9 sales and lists the vessel at €590,000 (approx. US$717,000).
Sources: Nauta Design, Castagnola Yacht
