The well-known French chef Jacques Pépin employs a saying in his teaching about food: Educate your palate and abide by it. Pépin is a longtime American public television personality and lives in the U.S., so perhaps “French” is a misleading identifier, though he was born near Lyon, France, so it’s accurate to his birth origin and training. Pépin’s saying is a foodie mantra, really, and also applies to wine and other taste-oriented enjoyments—like cigars.

In choosing cigars, the key is finding the ones you like and sticking with them—which may not be so simple in the avalanche of brands and size options available today. Still, educating your palate and abiding by it is the surest pathway to satisfaction. The selection process is individual, and should fit your personal taste. You don’t want to force it—why bother if you don’t like the taste of cigar tobacco smoke?—because the true goal here is enjoying the momentary blissful retreat of lighting up, while savoring the tobacco taste.

For the bird hunter, it’s even better if that moment includes friends, with whom you can share descriptions of your flavor preferences and talk about what you like as you smoke and enjoy the cigar—and share hunting, fine gun, and engaging dog stories.

Nestled behind the famed Cumberland Island National Seashore and established by automobile pioneer Howard Coffin in 1928 as a sanctuary for international sportsmen, Cabin Bluff has to be considered one of America’s finest sporting retreats. Its roots actually date back one century earlier, to 1827 and the formation on the property of the Camden Hunt Club, widely considered by many to be the country’s first hunting club.

With its classic log cabins and spectacular Cumberland River views, today’s Cabin Bluff exudes a charm and rustic elegance, yet remains tastefully hidden from the public’s view. In fact, despite the impressive who’s-who list of America’s political, industrial, and sporting elite who have quietly enjoyed the retreat for many years, it was only in 2010 that this private plantation opened its doors to the general public. Even now, this world-class hunting and fishing destination provides complete privacy to the lucky few who visit.

For many owners of Gordon setters, the breed’s allure is embedded in its history. Unofficially, that traces back to the 1600s, but the official story begins in the early 1800s in the United Kingdom with Alexander, the 4th Duke of Gordon, nicknamed “The Cock O’ The North.” At his castle on the River Spey in Scotland, the duke had a kennel of hardworking setters, among which he favored the black-and-tan coloring. It’s easy to imagine these handsome bird dogs scenting grouse with heads held high above the thick heather of the Scottish moorland. Another duke or two made an appearance throughout that period of history, but their inheritance of the kennels did more harm than good until the 6th Duke of Richmond-Gordon restored the canine lines.

Cross the Atlantic to the other side of the Gordon setter’s history, and in 1842 George Blunt of Morristown, New Jersey, imported two Gordon setters from the Gordon Castle kennels, one for himself and one for his friend Secretary of State Daniel Webster. Blunt kept Rake, a big black, white, and tan male. Webster took Rachel, a solid black-and-tan female. Both dogs were reputed to be excellent hunters, yet Blunt and Webster kept a running rivalry over whose dog was better. Rake and Rachel are accepted as the breed’s foundation in the United States.