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The Italian white truffle, one of the season's most luxurious food items, is disappearing from the menus of fine dining restaurants this year, as a result of what some experts say is the most disappointing crop in close to a decade.

An unseasonably hot summer and fall in Italy has resulted in low volumes of the prized fungus, causing prices to spike.

Truffles, which grow underground at the roots of certain trees, are pricey at the best of times, since they are found wild in only a few parts in the world.

But prices have soared so high that many restaurants can't afford to serve the delicacies, said Vancouver's Tyler Gray, one of the founders of Mikuni Wild Harvest, which supplies specialty wild foods to some of North America's top restaurants.

"It's been a tough ride," Mr. Gray said. "It's unfortunate because this is the time of year that everyone loves to take part in a really special item."

About 90 per cent of Mr. Gray's restaurant clients who would normally be ordering white truffles, a particularly prized variety, at this time of year are now leaving them off their menus altogether. Suppliers say they anticipate the price of white truffles will fall later in the season as cooler temperatures produce more and better quality tubers.

Found in Italy's Piedmont region, the white truffle is typically harvested between the end of September and the first week of January, when its distinct, slightly garlicky aroma is at its peak. Last year, Mr. Gray said, the average price for the delicacy was between $1,200 and $1,600 a pound. This year, it has more than doubled, averaging between $3,000 and $4,000 a pound.

Even where prices are not cutting into demand, some gourmet food retailers say it's hard to come by the delicacies.

The surge in price isn't affecting the demand for white truffles from some high-end restaurant and catering customers of Toronto's upscale Harvest Wagon specialty food store, says produce manager Danny DiMarco. But because of the shortage in Italy, he says, Harvest Wagon is having trouble acquiring the item for those clients.

Chef Massimo Capra of Toronto's Mistura restaurant says he is anxiously waiting to get his hands on the ingredient.

"It should have been here in the last couple of weeks, but we haven't seen any," Mr. Capra says. "When they come, we promote them. Otherwise, we just try to [lie] low."

He says his restaurant will do what it can to work around the shortage. While he tries to use only fresh tubers, he says, he may have to rely on prepared truffle products in the meantime.

Mr. Capra says several upcoming parties have arranged months in advance to have his restaurant prepare fresh white truffle pastas for them. Not only is he worried about whether he can receive the product in time, he must now ask clients whether they are willing to pay more for it.

"The price is absurd," he says, "[but] we do have people who do actually want it, no matter what price it is at."

In Vancouver, Italian restaurant CinCin is going ahead this month with its annual, month-long Mushroom and Truffle Festival, which includes offerings of fresh white truffles flown in from Italy.

"Every year, there's a little bit more of a shortage than the year last," said Shelley McArthur, communications director of Top Table Restaurant Group, which owns CinCin.

Since the restaurant shaves the white truffles to order as an accompaniment to its dishes, diners pay according to the fluctuating market price, Ms. McArthur said.

As of the beginning of the festival, she said CinCin was offering white truffle shavings at $59 for four grams. Ms. McArthur said that price is only a few dollars higher per serving than last year, though she noted it changes week to week.

But Dale MacKay, chef de cuisine at Vancouver's Lumière restaurant, said the cost of the fungus is just too precious, regardless of the harvest.

He said he'd rather not have to charge an additional $40 or more per plate to serve the item.

Mr. MacKay said black winter truffles from Australia are a good alternative. But, he warned that truffles harvested in the summer don't have much taste. Although they are generally much cheaper than winter truffles, they are used more for aesthetics than anything else, he said.

"If you have good black winter truffles, in my eyes they won't ever be as strong [as white ones], but they have fantastic flavour," he said. If the quality does not improve, Mr. Capra says, gourmands might have to wait until next season.

"That makes next year even more delicious," he says. "That's the European experience - you have to wait for good things. You can't just throw money at it."

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Truffles, uncovered

Italian white truffles taste unlike any other, says James Town, a Vancouver-based sales representative for the North American wild food supplier Mikuni Wild Harvest. While it is the most prized fungus in the world, the Italian white truffle is by no means the only luxury tuber on the market.

Mr. Town shares some tips for identifying the types of truffles most commonly served in high-end Canadian restaurants:

BLACK PÉRIGORD TRUFFLE

This truffle, found in the Périgord region of France, is black throughout and its flavour profile ranges from soft, subtle, wine notes to deep and earthy with hints of floral notes. Available between late November and March.

SUMMER TRUFFLE

This truffle is found in Europe between May and early October. It is white on the inside with a black exterior. It has a very light, nutty flavour with a hint of dirt.

BURGUNDY TRUFFLE

Named after the French region, this truffle has a tan to dark brown interior and black exterior. It tastes slightly of hazelnuts and has a gassy, faint aroma of alcohol. It is in season between late October and early February.

HIMALAYAN OR CHINESE

truffle

Like the Périgord, this truffle can be entirely black, and Mr. Town warns that it is sometimes passed off as the more expensive French kind. It has a stronger dirt and gasoline aroma than other varieties, which some find less appealing. They are available between mid-November and mid-March.

OREGON WHITE AND OREGON BLACK TRUFFLES

These fragile truffles are grown in Oregon state and are harvested between late October and January. The white truffle is white throughout and has a mild pineapple aroma, while the black truffle has a white interior and tastes like blue cheese.Wency Leung