On Monday, Americans celebrate Christopher Columbus' arrival on the Western Hemisphere (alternately called Indigenous Peoples Day by the people who lost).

This is more of a Yankee holiday, so I'm not sure exactly how they celebrate. But since my ancestry is Irish, I choose to celebrate it the way my people would: with alcohol. And since I'm Southern, I choose to celebrate it the way my people do: by making my own alcohol.

This drink takes a couple of months to make ... so you better start now. Introducing the quintessential Italian moonshine: limoncello.

4 cups pure alcohol
4 cups water
2 cups sugar
10 lemons

Peel the lemons, being careful not to peel the white part of the skin (which would give them a bitter taste). Cut the peeled lemons into wedges and put them with the alcohol into a wide-necked bottle. Close tightly and let rest in a dark room for 20 days. After 20 days, prepare a pot with a liter of water and the sugar. Warm the water slightly to allow the sugar to dissolve. Pour the alcohol into the water-sugar mixture, filtering out the lemon skin with the fine sieve. Stir for few minutes and pour into clean bottles quickly so the alcohol will not evaporate. Let the bottles rest in a dark room for another 20 days. After the 20 days, put the bottles in the refrigerator and serve when cold. Limoncello will keep in the refrigerator, if in a sealed container, indefinitely.

Or if that's all too much trouble, just buy a bottle of this.

Goda!