Alexander Timofeyev

I make mine less sweet and more Irish as an equal parts cocktail with Irish whiskey and coffee liqueur:

1 oz Irish whiskey
1 oz coffee liqueur
1 oz Irish cream
1 oz espresso

You can also try blanco or reposado tequila and light or dark rum in place of the whiskey for interesting variations.

Absolutely. Difford's calls it an Irish Chocolate Oranj'tini, but I call it a Scrambled B-52 cocktail.

Luxardo Maraschino has a very different flavor from Cherry Heering. I'd first reduce the amount of Heering, to keep it from overwhelming while preserving the original flavor of the cocktail. Swapping Luxardo for Heering would yield a different drink altogether.

I agree with Dave, I think the maraschino cherry syrup would be an okay substitute, particularly at just 1/4 oz. I think adding a teaspoon of Cynar or Averna, if you have one of those, will balance out the sweetness while adding the herbal component that the syrup is missing.