BOATS & GEAR NEW TECHNOLOGY, REVIEWS PRODUCTS CRUISING SAILOR

Tfor the here’s something very French about no-nonsense aluminum cruising boats, perhaps because the vast majority of them are built in France. The very best examples are rugged yet refined, handsome yet utilitarian, and are equally at home either crossing the open ocean or tucked into a secluded cove. When you come across a bare brushed-aluminum hull in a distant anchorage, you just sense that the sailors on board will have an adventurous tale to tell.

At least that’s my impression. And when I first inspected the new Allures 45.9 at last fall’s U.S. Sailboat Show in Annapolis, Maryland — yet another offering with a decidedly French pedigree, starting with its prolific Gallic designer, Olivier Racoupeau — nothing about the yacht’s purposeful lines or inviting interior dissuaded me from that opinion. For long-range cruising, inside and out, the Allures represents the best of two worlds. It really fits my definition of a bluewater cruiser.

With an extended bowsprit forward (for flying off-wind sails and housing the ground tackle, which consists of an optional selflaunching Rocna anchor) and a nifty arch aft (perfect for antennas, a wind generator and solar panels, and while doubling as dinghy davits), the Allures 45.9 is clean and functional at both ends. In between, there’s no lack of spiffy features and attention to detail.

Working from the bow aft, the double-spreader deck-stepped mast features a Solent rig with a pair of headsails, both on furlers. A copious sail locker is fitted with a crash bulkhead. The faux-teak deck is a product called Marinedeck, a good-looking cork-and-resin composite that doubles as excellent nonskid. There’s a solid vang on the boom that also features a Walder boom brake, which tames the spar when jibing. A pair of safety rails at the mast are properly sized and spaced, and provide plenty of support when working forward. The traveler is stationed on deck just forward of the generous dodger.

The cockpit is very cool. The companionway includes a two-piece acrylic slat that disappears into the deck when not in use. The colorcoded vang, mainsheet and reefing lines are led to a suite of winches and clutches to port and starboard on the coachroof. The port locker also houses an opening hatch to the technical room down below; aft of the starboard locker is a nifty nook for stowing the dinghy outboard. The