ambuca di Sicilia is a small town in the province of Agrigento. The Arab emir, Zabut, founded it immediately after the first arrival of the Arabs on Sicily in 830 A.D. Still today, Sambuca has an entire Saracen neighborhood and a Saracen tower and fortress.
Recently, however, archaeologists have discovered the remains of buildings from the 7th to the 5th centuries B.C. that prove Diodorus Siculus right in claiming the existence of a Greek settlement not too far from here. Those early Greek settlers probably brought the first grapevines here.
Sambuca's wines have always been known in Sicily for their quality. Wine lovers used to come here all the way from Palermo and other Sicilian cities to buy Sambuca wine.
The D.O.C. appellation was established in 1995. It gives the winegrowers of Sambuca di Sicilia a much-deserved chance to do justice to their wine and to enrich their production with international-style wines, like Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon.
This page was written by Stefano Milioni. Background image and most photos in this section courtesy of Giuliano Bugialli, all right reserved (see Copyright and Credits).
ambuca di Sicilia is a small town in the province of Agrigento. The Arab emir, Zabut, founded it immediately after the first arrival of the Arabs on Sicily in 830 A.D. Still today, Sambuca has an entire Saracen neighborhood and a Saracen tower and fortress.