Testing the Barletta proved exciting. It’s a superb first-year effort for the company, new in the ’toon market but clearly listening to boaters’ desires. This platform does everything well from cruising to watersports. This truly versatile boat of high quality starts with great performance. Rigged with a new Mercury 250 FourStroke, the 25-foot tri-toon reached 45 mph at 6,000 rpm turning a 15-by-15-inch Mercury Enertia stainless-steel three-blade propeller. This package is thrifty too. Best cruise netted 3.6 mpg (4.8 gph) at a sedate 17 mph and 3,000 rpm. Even at 4,500 rpm and more than 31 mph, we still saw just under 3 mpg. Handling was predictable and authoritative, with crisp turning ability and no porpoising, bounce or wallowing at any speed. Acceleration from the Mercury FourStroke gave us bass-boat-like acceleration of 6.2 seconds from dead idle to 30 mph. Minimum plane speed was just 11.5 mph at 2,450 rpm.
Where the tubes meet the water, the Barletta employs dual lifting strakes on all three 26-inch-diameter tubes, plus a full underbelly skin to boost speed and economy. The crossmembers are extruded I-beams gasketed at every bolted joint. The deck is three-quarter-inch plywood, glued and screwed together. Infinity Milan floor weave makes for attractive decking, but the real attraction is the furniture, console and layout. At the bow, two facing contoured loungers make for a cozy pit. There’s deck space in front of the polished stainless-steel entry gate for easy beaching. Amidships, the driver’s console is low and sleek. There’s no windscreen, but the design and layout are superb. Attention to detail in the design of the deck components, seating, installation and rigging is on a very high level. The captain and co-captain’s chairs are supple and supportive. The diamond-stitched Amalfi tan upholstery features carbon-black inset trim, a sleek combination that invites guests to kick back.
The stern seating is almost a mirror image of the bow. The stern perimeter continues the tan and black upholstery, inset with stereo speakers and topped with a stainless-steel boarding ladder and a ski-tow/bumper-holder combo.
High Points
- Plug into the USB charging ports at every seating location.
- 18 Yeti-ready cup holders.
- Retractable pet dish tray under the console is a unique innovation, showing the thinking about how boaters use their rigs for family — pets included!
Price: $97,650
How We Tested
Engine: Mercury 250 FourStroke
Drive/Prop: Outboard/Mercury Enertia 15" x 15" 3-blade stainless steel
Gear Ratio: 1.75:1
Fuel Load: 15 gal.
Crew Weight: 400 lb.
Barletta Boat Company - Bristol, Indiana; 574-825-8900; barlettapontoonboats.com
