Think you’ve got a glimmering resume? Nice try. Just ask Zane Lamprey, host of globetrotting drinking show “Three Sheets.”
In the past three years, Lamprey’s visited 300-plus bars in 50 countries, tapping into local drinking customs before crawling out of bed the next day to test hangover cures. He’s played a drinking game called the Game of Death, visited Hennessey’s distillery in Cognac, France, and drank viper rum (rum bottled with a live snake) in Belize, all while teaching viewers about travel and, you know, getting crazy-drunk.
This fall, a cable-network demise threatened to take the show off the air, much to the chagrin of Lamprey’s cult followers. So, like any good drinking-show host, he held beer-chugging rallies to keep “Three Sheets” alive. Lo and behold, Season 4 kicks off Monday on the Fine Living Network. To celebrate, Lamprey’s throwing — what else — a drinking party, complete with drinking games, open bar and a screening of the new season’s Amsterdam episode.
For those of us who don’t know, what’s a Zane party like?
If anyone knows how to throw a party, it’s me. I have my sidekicks, so I have Steve McKenna [an old college buddy] … and Jim the Cop, who’s always trying to out-chug me. It’s kind of like a bunch of comedians throwing a party. … We’re going to shave [McKenna] completely bald and then we’re going to put white paint on his entire head and neck. … He’s going to be our bald eagle.
Would you ever film in the Midwest (wink, wink)?
Chicago needs its own show. We talked about it forSeason 5, but I think Season 5 will be international. There’s a season in the future that’s just going to be me … doing shows in the U.S.: Chicago, Milwaukee, maybe Cleveland, maybe not Cleveland [laughs], Philly.
How often do people say you have the best job in the world?
I would say daily.
Daily?
I would say today it’s at least been about 10. My son, who’s 2, told me; the nanny told me. You know, there are other jobs that are amazing. I might say a doctor or a heart surgeon. But as far as the most fun job? Look, I travel around the world on someone else’s dime. I get paid to do it … and when we get there, they’re like, “Hey, what do you want to do?”
Besides drink?
We’re in Tuscany, and you know what I want to do? I want to rent a Ferrari, drive around the winery in a brand new F430, so that’s what we did. We get to Germany, and what do we want to do? Well, before we drink — because I don’t drink and drive; I drive and then drink — I got a brand new car and took the Autobahn [to Jagermeister]. I’m a dude, so I like cars and boats.
So there’s no downside to being a drinking-show host?
Well, there are downsides. … Whenever I’m home, my friends never know that I’m here. I’m like, “Hey, did you have a party last night?” And they’re like, “I thought you were away.” I have to hear about my friends’ parties on Facebook.
Have you ever been banned in a city you filmed in?
I’ve been banned from a bar, but never a city — that’d be awesome!
Ever said, “I never want to drink again” after an episode?
Every episode. Every hangover, I swear off drinking.
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lbalde@tribune.com
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Zanedependence Day
Where: Joe’s Bar, 940 W. Weed St. 312-337-3486
When: 2-6 p.m. Saturday
Price: $75-$100
Tickets: 312-337-3486; zanelamprey.com
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Our day with Zane
Here’s where we’d drag him if we had a say in producing a Chicago show:
LOCAL LIBATIONS
Mary’s Rec Room (5402 N. Clark St.), the new brewery annex at Hamburger Mary’s, to sample the latest local brews: Gangster Hopped-Up Amber Ale, Dandy Shandy and Lightweight Golden Ale.
In Fine Spirits (5420 N. Clark St.) to sip on the Good Life, a seasonal cocktail starring aquavit from Lake Bluff, Ill.-based North Shore Distillery.
Sheffield’s (3258 N. Sheffield Ave.) to chug brews made by five Illinois breweries in one stop: Metropolitan’s Dynamo Copper Lager, Half Acre’s Daisy Cutter, Two Brothers’ Ebel Weiss, Goose Island’s Matilda and Flossmoor Brewery’s IPA.
Chicago-based distillery Koval (5121 N. Ravenswood Ave.) for a private tour of how they whip up delicious batches of organic pear vodka and ginger liqueur.
HANGOVER HELPERS
The Pony (1638 W. Belmont Ave.) for a breakfast stack, the bar’s take on the gravy-laden biscuit monstrosity created at downstate diner Merry Ann’s.
6 Degrees (1935 N. Damen Ave.) for the Horseshoe sandwich, an open-faced sammie topped with cheese fries, a regional fave from Springfield, the owner’s hometown.
Lisa Arnett
