Pinot Noir has the reputation as the toughest grape to grow, but for those who toil with Nebbiolo, growing and making Pinot Noir must seem like a cinch. The greatest expressions of Pinot Noir come from its spiritual homeland in Burgundy, but there are good examples made in much of the wine-growing world; the same cannot be said of Nebbiolo. Nebbiolo is made almost exclusively in northern Italy where it is crafted into many wines, the best known of which is Barolo. Nowhere else in the world are comparable expressions of this misunderstood grape being made.

Nebbiolo is a nightmare for growers, producers and marketers. It flowers early, making it susceptible to frost, and it ripens late, making it vulnerable to rains and rot. Unlike Pinot Noir, if you do manage to get Nebbiolo safely off the vine, you don’t get a soft, delicious and easy to drink wine; you get a tightly wound shell, revealing only shadows of what it may become in 10 or 20 years. That’s if you don’t ruin it in the winery with overly warm fermentation, losing its delicate aromas, or mistakenly extract too much harsh tannin — easily done with this lightly coloured but heavily structured wine.

You get none of the great press and hype that goes with the mystique of Pinot Noir. Growing great Nebbiolo is a lonely and thankless job with relatively few admirers. Even some Piedmontese are tuning their backs on it in favour of more amiable grapes such as Barbera and even Cabernet Sauvignon — a sad situation for one of the world’s most noble and wonderful grapes.

Nebbiolo reminds me of an artisan caught up in the fast-paced modern world. There is no time for his craft and little appreciation for what he does. Today, the world wants things now. Nebbiolo was never designed to please early; it has always been a grape that required and rewarded the patient.

Relegated to the high altitudes of northern Italy, Nebbiolo continues to be used in several traditional wines, but few of these make it to foreign shores. In the mountainous Val D’Aosta, small amounts of Nebbiolo are still made in the region of Donnaz. They are light and elegant examples, brimming with perfume and freshness. In Lombardy, Nebbiolo is crated under the local name Chiavennasca and made into a wine known as Valtellina. These are structured wines with delicate aromas and a unique floral character. In Piedmont, Ghemme, Gattinara and Nebbiolo d’Alba are all interesting and less expensive examples of the grape.

Only Barolo and Barbaresco have been able to make much of an impact on international markets and even they have struggled. These wines are competing in a world market that favours bigger, easier wines that require less patience. So much pressure has been put on Barolo the region is now split into two camps. The first is making wines that respect the traditions of the area, trying to create elegant, long-lived examples. The second is making wines in a more modern style that are less structured and deliver more immediate pleasure.

Nebbiolo is rumoured to be named after the fog (nebbia) that is so common in the hills of Barolo in the fall. Some go as far as to say this fog has an effect on the quality of the grapes and is one of the reasons Nebbiolo has not found a home outside the region. True or not, Nebbiolo remains a mysterious grape that seems shy when performing away from home, preferring instead the comfort of the hills of northern Italy.

Nebbiolo is one of our greatest treasures at the table, where its often-misunderstood acidity is put to work taming the many rich cuisines of Italy. Perfectly aged Nebbiolo from a great producer may be the very pinnacle of wine, but few today give it much thought. There was a time when Barolo was deemed the “King of wines and the wine of kings,” but now these lightly coloured, shy and austere wines of Piedmont are losing out to more brash and simple competitors. Nebbiolo has shown us that traditions are easily lost in the modern world and that good things in life don’t always come quickly, but the best are still worth the wait.

2006 Vietti Nebbiolo Perbacco, Langhe, Italy $34 — Perfumed aromas of roses and dried sage followed by a rustic and structured mouthfeel. This wine has something wild about it, an intriguing savage quality that draws you back again and again.