Now here’s a find: 36-month-old alpage Sbrinz from Gourmino, the celebrated Swiss affineur. The word “alpage” should get your attention. It means the cheese was made in the Alps during the brief summer grass season, not in a valley dairy with winter milk. Only 5 percent of Sbrinz production is alpage. In this case, the producer is a loner who lives on Alp Chüeneren year-round and makes his Sbrinz with raw milk from his brother’s herd. “I love the seclusion,” says cheesemaker Andreas Gut.

On a list of imported cheeses that deserve more awareness and vastly more acclaim, I would put Sbrinz at the top. If you think it’s just Parm by another name (and a higher price), it’s time to learn more about this delectable—and ancient—Swiss cheese.

I’ve heard an importer refer to Sbrinz as “Parm’s grandpa,” suggesting that it predates Parmigiano Reggiano. Some sources say the Swiss taught Italians their methods. There isn’t much evidence for either notion, although traders have moved goods back and forth in this mountainous region for centuries. In earlier times, the shortest corridor between central Switzerland and northern Italy was known as the Sbrinz Route. Pope Clemente VIII, who died in 1605, was a Sbrinz enthusiast.

As am I, and the Gourmino Sbrinz is the best I’ve tasted. Producer Andreas Gut has, multiple times, been named the best alpine Sbrinz cheesemaker by the organization that protects and promotes Sbrinz. After 36 months of aging, including at least a year in Gourmino’s caves, his cheese is hard and craggy but still remarkably creamy—more buttery on the palate than a 3-year-old Parmigiano Reggiano. The aroma is nutty and fruity, with a hint of pineapple, and the flavor is sweeter and less spicy than Parm at that age. I do enjoy a nugget of two-year-old Parmigiano Reggiano, but I can eat way more three-year-old Sbrinz.

Sbrinz and Parmigiano are both hefty wheels—90 pounds or so—made with raw cow’s milk by roughly the same methods. The key difference is that Sbrinz requires whole milk, while the milk for Parm is partly skimmed. No wonder Sbrinz seems more buttery and less granular. It has at least 45% fat in dry matter (the cheese minus its water), compared to a minimum of 32% for Parmigiano Reggiano.

So why don’t we see more of this magnificent Swiss cheese in stores? For one thing, it’s expensive, especially if you’re comparing the Gourmino product with 12- to 18-month-old Parmigiano Reggiano from a large dairy, where it’s made with pooled milk. A more legitimate price comparison would be with a farmstead Parmigiano such as Valserena’s Brown Cow Parmigiano Reggiano, likewise limited and costly. The heavy tariffs on Swiss imports have only made matters worse.

But here’s the thing: an ounce or two of Gourmino’s intense and concentrated alpage Sbrinz is totally satisfying. When you’re comparing prices, think “per serving,” not “per pound.”

Sbrinz’s high butterfat content means retailers need to keep it cold. They can’t (or shouldn’t) display it on the counter as they do with Parm, says Gourmino’s U.S. representative Joe Salonia. But without the visibility, sales can suffer, especially in a busy store without a dedicated cheese staff to hand-sell it.

This fall and winter, let’s show up for Sbrinz. Enjoy it before dinner with sparkling wine or at the end of the meal with red wine. Although I photographed it with an Alsatian white wine, if you’re serving Sbrinz to me, pour me a red.

Look for Gourmino’s alpage Sbrinz at these retailers and ask your local independent retailer about stocking it.