Design and Construction
The Gin Fizz measures 11.4 meters overall, with a 32-foot waterline and a generous beam of 12 feet, 6 inches. It carries that width well forward and especially well aft. The trade-off is headroom: relatively low freeboard and an almost flush deck create the sleek profile but limit standing room below to about six feet.
The hull is solid fiberglass laminate, while the deck has a balsa core. Jeanneau used end-grain balsa and isolated potential delamination with resin edges. The hull and deck meet at a flange secured with bolts and chemical bonding agents; the joint was also fiberglassed. Bulkheads are tabbed to the hull and furniture facings.
The wood floors were glassed over, and the hull-support system is robust. The iron keel was epoxy-coated and externally fastened. However, the exposed keel bolts in the bilge were covered in fiberglass, leaving them inaccessible. The rudder is wood sheathed in a thin layer of fiberglass and carried on a substantial stainless steel stock, with a molded skeg supporting the shaft strut.
Jeanneau’s molded nonskid has held up well on older boats that are still inspected.
Rig, Handling, and Performance
Early Gin Fizz boats were almost all ketches; later models were sloops. The ketch carries slightly more sail area, though not enough to justify the additional cockpit clutter. Its mizzenmast stands just ahead of the helm, reducing the otherwise excellent visibility provided by the low-slung deckhouse. The sloop avoids that obstruction.
The original Isomat mast is deck-stepped. It may show spider cracks around the base, and the cabintop may be slightly depressed, so the maststep area deserves careful inspection. The mainsheet and traveler cross the cockpit along the main-companionway bridgedeck. The primary winches are a good stretch from the helm, making the boat poorly arranged for singlehanded sailing.
With its almost high-aspect rig, the Gin Fizz is fairly close-winded. However, it makes considerable leeway, which cancels out any advantage of pinching. The hull will pound when beating, particularly in a seaway, but it feels solid in the water and has a well-balanced helm.
The ketch offers more sail-plan options in heavy weather. With a reefed mizzen and storm jib, the boat can stand up to dirty conditions. Owners report that one Gin Fizz averaged 120 miles a day during a four-year circumnavigation, making 5 knots in and day out, and that the boat can stand up to dirty weather with a reefed mizzen and storm jib.
Cockpit and Accommodations
The cockpit is the boat’s most striking feature. It’s huge, yet it works for both coastal and offshore cruising, and it remains dry despite the modest freeboard. The helm has a good-sized wheel, and its seat doubles as the bridgedeck for the aft-cabin companionway.
The small aft cabin is accessible only from the cockpit. It contains a double berth, a hanging locker, and a few shelves. The berth is comfortable and lies in a part of the boat where the motion is easy, while keeping the off watch only a moment away from the cockpit.
The main companionway is wide, with broad steps leading below. To starboard, the relatively small galley has two absurdly small sinks, a good-sized stove and oven, and a poorly insulated icebox. Opposite is a large navigation desk with enough room for an unfolded chart.
In the saloon, a centerline table with folding leaves serves a C-shaped dinette to port. The settees have no full cushion backs, only small upper rests. The head is to port and can expand across the cabin to provide more elbowroom. The forward V-berth isn’t overly large.
Interior joinery is average, usually in flat mahogany, and the cabin can feel a little dark. Jeanneau didn’t use molded interior pieces. Instead, fabric covered the headliners and locker faces. It gives a clean appearance but doesn’t hold up well. The original floorboards were glassed-over plywood with carpeting above.
Two opening hatches provide just adequate ventilation. The water tank is usually a bladder beneath the quarterberth, while the large external chain locker can hold considerable ground tackle.
Machinery and Service Access
The original engine was a seawater-cooled Perkins 4108 or 4107. By now, it will likely be little more than a rusted remnant.
Engine access is decent once the large companionway steps are removed, though moving those steps is a challenge. The stuffing box is difficult to reach through the limited access from the quarterberth side.
Known Issues
The main bulkhead may show delamination and should be carefully sounded. The inaccessible keel bolts should also be inspected—or, better yet, X-rayed—because they’re buried beneath fiberglass.
Check the rudder for water intrusion and delamination. The original nylon rudder bearings also tended to swell after the boat had been left out of the water for a long time.
Hull blisters appear unpredictably: some boats have them, while others never develop them. The original interior fabric has poor longevity, and the maststep area may show spider cracking or slight cabintop depression.
The Verdict
The Gin Fizz is a thoughtfully built cruiser that trades headroom and ease of singlehanding for interior volume, seakeeping, and a cockpit that works. Construction details such as the flanged and glassed hull-to-deck joint, isolated balsa deck core, and robust floors point to serious offshore intent. The ketch rig’s flexibility and the boat’s reaching performance also suit long passages.
Prospective buyers should budget for engine replacement and new interior fabric, along with careful structural sounding and inspection of the keel bolts, rudder, bearings, and maststep.
Pros
- Robust, flanged and glassed hull-to-deck joint
- Balsa-cored deck with resin isolation
- Huge, dry cockpit
- Excellent visibility from the helm on the sloop version
- Reported circumnavigation record demonstrates offshore capability
- Well-balanced helm and solid feel in a seaway
- Ketch rig offers more options in heavy weather
Cons
- Inaccessible keel bolts
- Original nylon rudder bearings can swell
- Poorly arranged for singlehanded sailing, with primary winches far from the helm
- Limited headroom
- Interior fabric doesn’t last well
- Original seawater-cooled engine is likely beyond salvage
- Hull can pound when beating, especially in a seaway
