Restaurant Wine Lists

As I listened to a restaurateur talk about her wine list the other day, she said something that made me wonder.

She said that she has a hard time selling a Santa Cruz Mountains appellation wine because the guest ordering wine can't be sure of what they will get. Could be awesome, could suck. And she's right. She also said that collectively and generally speaking, 2005 was a great year in Burgundy and so if she has that to offer on her list next to a SCM pinot for example, she'll sell the devil out of the Burg.

Why?

I mean, really. I'm asking, because here is what I was thinking while I listened to her. You picked the wine. You tasted it. You determined it to be of similar or equal quality to the other wines on your list. So then, why are the guests not trusting that? If they see a 2005 Burgundy that they are assured will be superb, why not assume or at least give the restaurant credit for the other selections as being on par with a known standard?

I think I know the answer, but I really wanted to put this out there for people to think about.