Finch & Fork Hosts Halloween Cocktail Class

Make These Four Drinks Crafted by Santa Barbara Native Jazz Moralez

"American Werewolf in London," "Children of the Corn," "Bella Lugosi," and "Cold Blooded." | Credit: Ingrid Bostrom

As a fifth-generation Santa Barbaran from the Cota lineage, the Canary Hotel’s beverage manager Jazz Moralez quickly brought hometown vibes to the cocktail menu at Finch & Fork after being hired a year ago, nodding to our history with drinks like the Don Oreña and Francesco Franceschi. Now she’s adding holidays to the mix and starting a series of mixology lessons with this weekend’s Witches & Brew cocktail class, where participants will learn to make four different Halloween-inspired drinks — and drink two of them — for $31.

Jazz Moralez, beverage director of Finch & Fork. | Credit: Ingrid Bostrom

“As much as I love children, I wanted to do something for adults,” said Moralez, whose extended family has lived on Mellifont Avenue on the Eastside for decades. And she knows many of us adults have collected an eclectic range of liquor bottles over the years that we aren’t sure what to do with.

“This is a class about how to be strategic with your hodgepodge, and also how to impress your friends,” she said, explaining that her intent is to riff on the classics. “I don’t want to send guests off to buy 50 million ingredients.”

The cocktails — which can also be ordered at the bar for those not attending class — are the Bella Lugosi, a champagne cocktail that includes nitro Guinness topped with agave syrup and mole chocolate bitters; the American Werewolf in London, a spin on the espresso martini with Cutler’s Cold Brew and gin; the Cold Blooded, which adds pinches of salt to a black Manhattan base; and the Children of the Corn, a carbonated refresher starring Nixta corn liqueur.

Moralez plans to host more classes in the future and continue to develop cocktails that reflect on her world travels, from flamenco dancing across Spain to learning Portuguese in Brazil. “I have a very eclectic understanding of drinks,” she said.

She’s also worked all across town, from The Lark, Les Marchands, and Loquita to El Encanto and Hotel Californian, and was even the food and nutrition supervisor at Cottage Hospital during the early days of COVID. The indulgence of the hospitality industry eventually lured her back. “I’m all about that gluttony,” laughed Moralez, and she’s quite prepared to share that passion with the rest of us.

The Witches & Brew classes are 4-6 p.m. on Friday, October 28; Sunday, October 30; and Monday, October 31 at Finch & Fork inside the Kimpton Canary, 31 W. Carrillo Street. The $31 cost includes two drinks, which cost $15 each when ordered from the bar.