Kansas City, Miss""ouri, Oct. 27, 2011 – SPIN! Neapolitan Pizza, James Beard Award-winning Chef Michael Smith, and Cellar Rat Wine Merchants are joining forces to benefit Harvesters: the Community Food Network. On four Tuesdays in November, the collaboration of friends will present “Tour d’ Italia” pizza and wine flight dinners. Each week will feature four wines from a different Italian wine region along with a specially created four-course meal.

“Our guests have been asking for wine dinners because we had some really fun ones last year,” says SPIN! co-owner Gail Lozoff. “We always want to make them special, more special than someone having their special pizza at SPIN! So we roped our friend Ryan Sciara of Cellar Rat into helping us design the events and Michael Smith into adding his culinary touch to our menu. They were both happy to be part of a project for Harvesters.  We’re calling it a Collaboration of Friends, and that’s what it is!”

Each week, one of the four SPIN! locations will host a different wine region’s import manager and serve a Tour d’ Italia menu created in collaboration with Chef Michael Smith. Seatings are available from 5:30 – 6:30 p.m. The price is just $39.50 per person with $10 per guest benefitting Harvesters.

Wines of the North (Veneto/Piedmont) will be presented on Nov. 1 at 4950 Main St. On Nov. 8, Italy’s southern wines will be served at SPIN!’s Lee’s Summit location, 1808 N.W. Chipman Rd. The Overland Park location, 6541 W. 119th St., will feature the wines of Tuscany on Nov. 15 and Sicilian wines will be poured Nov. 29 in Olathe, 14230 W. 119th St.

A different wine will accompany each course, beginning with an antipasti of Chef Michael Smith’s rosemary garlic oil broccolini with roasted red peppers, marinated olives, breadsticks, and burrata — a fresh mozzarella with a creamy center. For the second course, guests will select one of SPIN!’s seven signature salads accompanied by fresh house-made dressing.

Choices extend to the main course, where guests can choose any SPIN! Pizza Mia (gluten free is available) or the Tour d’ Italia pizza. Created exclusively for the Harvester’s benefit, the Tour d’ Italia is a pizza Bianca brushed with a roasted olive oil glaze topped with a colorful, flavorful combination of shrimp, fontina cheese, oregano, tomato, calabrian peppers, and sopressata — a dry-cured Italian salami with a healthy dose of garlic. 

The beautiful and delectable dessert features talented SPIN! staffer Hazel Brown’s flourless chocolate mini cake with Chef Michael’s roasted pears, a choice of gelato, and burnt carmel sauce.

SPIN! Neapolitan Pizza is owned and operated by Gail and Richard Lozoff and Edwin Brownell, who are experienced in large multi-unit expansion, franchising, and operations. For information, please visit www.spinpizza.com.

Reservations are required for the Tour d’ Italia pizza and wine flight dinners to benefit Harvesters. Visit www.spinpizza.com or call 816-808-7825.

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