For my birthday I was gifted an excellent book on making your own bitters; "Handcrafted Bitters" by Will Budiaman. Along with how to make bitters, the book includes many recipes perfect for taste-testing your new bitters. This drink, using chocolate bitters, caught my eye.
I haven't had many scotch-based cocktails so I was eager to try it. The taste is a little smoky but very smooth.
1 oz Scotch (blended suggested)
1 1/2 oz sweet vermouth
1/2 maraschino liqueur
3 dashes chocolate bitters
Garnish with a maraschino cherry
My preferred method of mixing martinis is to swirl the ingredients in a mixing glass before straining into a chilled martini glass. It's faster and looks fancier, in my opinion. Just be careful not to swirl too hard, lest you splash away some of the drink!