Brian and Scott kick off with cocktails, then spend most of the episode swapping vacation stories, comparing family travel logistics, and revisiting a soundtrack tie-in album that turned out to be more Green Day than expected. They also set up next week’s listening assignment, which is shaping up to be a song-of-the-summer bracket.

In this episode:

• Brian and Scott open with a whiskey-and-cocktail check-in, including the “perfect” old fashioned debate and an orange Manhattan variation
• Scott shares a vacation old fashioned method he found online, including the sugar-first, bitters-second approach and a firm bitters count
• Brian explains the orange Manhattan ingredients, including Russell’s Reserve single barrel, orange liqueur, coffee liqueur, sweet vermouth, and chocolate bitters
• They discuss the soundtrack album for Nimrods, a movie centered on a teen band called the Analog Dogs trying to open for Green Day on New Year’s Eve
• Both agree the soundtrack works better as movie accompaniment than as a standalone album, with Green Day’s tracks carrying most of the runtime
• Vacation recaps focus on Virginia Beach and the Bahamas, with a strong contrast between family-friendly logistics, entertainment, and overall convenience
• Scott is impressed by Virginia Beach’s free concerts, nightly magic shows, silent disco, and cleaner, calmer atmosphere than he expected
• Brian describes Baha Mar and its resort setup, including the water park, aquarium-style pool, flamingos, and expensive on-site food
• The dads compare how their kids are getting more independent on trips, from carrying their own beach gear to hanging out at the pool on their own
• Reading progress becomes a surprisingly big win for both, with Scott finishing a 621-page book and Brian finishing several Kindle titles, including Yesteryear
• They preview a song-of-the-summer bracket for next week using eight tracks from 2026, including songs by Tame Impala, Drake, Ella Langley, Zara Larsson, and others
• Shout-outs go to Sarah for recommending the 502s in Virginia Beach and to the bartenders at Horse to Water at Bahama Mar for a standout Curious George cocktail