A very good friend shared with me a bottle of 1970 Inglenook Cabernet Sauvignon. The experience in tasting an old Napa Valley cabernet this old was remarkable for a number of reasons. First, it was the year of my and my wife’s anniversary. That the bottle and us survived 51 years is noteworthy!

Second, Inglenook was a leader in its time. Its reputation fell apart with a lot of ownership changes that began in 1964, particularly when Heublein came aboard and turned the label in a grocery store brand. There followed RJR Nabisco, Grand Metropolitan and then Constellation. By 1994 Inglenook was pretty much destroyed. Finally Francis Ford Coppola, who purchased a part of the property in 1975, bought back the Inglenook name in 2011. Initially the estate was known as Niebaum-Coppola and later as Rubicon Estate. His new releases under the Inglenook label — although pricey — at least quality back to the name.

But can Napa Valley wines made today survived 51 years? The 1970 was still alive and kicking — tired and fading but still in the game.

Having tasted a lot of $100-plus Napa Valley cabernet sauvignons in the last month, I really question whether 50 years of age will do them any good. They may be delicious but many of them are not balanced.