Ever wondered why the grapes of the Amarone are dried up ? Well this is attributed to the process of producing Amarone.

All the bunches, harvested between September and 2 week of October are selected for the production of the Amarone. The drying process will take up to four months. During the drying process the bunches have to be perfectly healthy, i.e.  without any bruises and having fruits not too close to each other, allowing the air flow in order to avoid molding and rotting 

Selecting grapes during harvesting is strictly done by hand only.

Grapes are allowed to dry, traditionally on bamboo racks but more commonly in plastic or wooden crates. This process is called appassimento or rasinate (to dry and shrivel) in Italian. 

Due to water evaporation during drying, the sugar content will increase enveloping unique flavors and aromas in the resulting wine.  

Modern Amarone is produced in special drying chambers under controlled conditions. This approach minimizes the amount of handling of the grapes and helps prevent molding 

In Amarone, the quality of the grape skin is a primary concern in order to bring out  the tannin, color, intensity of the wine. The process of desiccation not only concentrates the juices within the grape, but also increases the skin contact of the grapes. 

The drying process creates a polymerisation of the tannin in the skin that contributes to the overall balance of the finished wine.