Pieninis Krupnikas

[mashani]

My bet is the lemon is needed if you want to get all the milk solids to really coagulate into big enough bits that you can filter them all out of there and get it to be that clear like that. Without it, it might be cloudier like Irish Cream or Kahlua. But that's just an educated Indian cheese makers guess LOL.

[swenocha]

I think you're likely right. Darn near every recipe calls for at least some citrus. The non-chocolate varieties are much heavier on the citrus actually. After the cheesecloth strain, it was pretty murky, btw. You can leave it that way and not do the final straining and get a more creamy variety. I tasted at this point, and thought it was quite tasty, but I decided to fully strain this one. I didn't take a pic (well, actually, you can see it in the strainer and bowl in the earlier pics), but here's one from one of the recipe sites (this was a citrus variety and had no chocolate... mine was much more chocolate milk looking):

[swenocha]

I was pretty sure I had read as much, but it was confirmed from one of the recipe sites. Here are two notes on citrus in the recipes:

* The milk liqueur may not coagulate as readily when using UHT pasteurized milk. If using, increase the amount of citrus.
** A small amount of citrus will help the milk to coagulate. Adding more citrus will give a more pronounced citrusy flavor.

Here's a simple google search that will provide a wealth of recipes. There are Lithuanian, Portuguese, Mongolian, and other varieties, but the basic premise is equal parts milk/vodka/sugar... linky

[swenocha]

Just had my first sample... Wow. Crazy good. Creamy, with a touch of bourbon and a nice vanilla flavor.

[BigPapaG]

Nice!

Thanks for laying out the steps too!

If I were going for more of a Chocolaty style, how much more Cocoa powder do you think based on your current taste tests?