Tuesday Tea and Tomes: At Home at Highclere inspires gracious living everywhere!

At Home at Highclere will delight fans of  both Downton Abbey and gracious living.

"At Home at Highclere, Entertaining at the Real Downton Abbey" is one book that most assuredly fits the definition of our Tuesday feature - this is a true  "tome" in size, weight and hefty material. Approximately 11.5 by 10 inches, slightly over four pounds and just shy of 300 pages, the English country manor's guide to entertainment is a showpiece in and of itself.

But like the fashionable Crawleys of Downton Abbey, there's more to this book than just its fancy appearance. The contents cover a variety of topics from the history of Highclere's inhabitants (the Carnarvon family) to famous guests which included  Henry James, author of "Portrait of a Lady" and "The Turn of the Screw" (see May 5, 2020 Tuesday Tea and Tomes),  and the Prince of Wales, son of Queen Victoria and eventual King of England.

BTS visited Highclere Castle in 2015 (Rachel in the foreground), but still so much to learn!

Although we visited Highclere in 2015 and interviewed Lady Carnarvon for TeaTime Magazine that same year, it's impossible to learn everything about this impressive abode in a few way-too-short afternoons. "At Home at Highclere" provides interesting details on various rooms that will be very familiar to Downton Abbey fans, such as the library and the drawing room.

We welcome you to Highclere and Pemberly Pines!

In between tales of entertaining from past eras to present there are inviting and scrumptious-looking recipes which include preparations for  meat, game and fowl as well as,  our favorite,  afternoon tea (there are two scone recipes!).

Ready to greet for our weekend guests at Pemberly Pines, like the Carnarvons of Highclere, with a cup of hot tea.

"At Home at Highclere" was written by the current countess, Fiona Carnarvon, in 2017 and I purchased  it shortly after it was published.  I confess, I really didn't do a "deep dive" until recently. Although I truly enjoyed reading all the tales from the past eras of wining and dining, I found I was a bit partial to the end of the book where Lady Carnarvon writes of how she and her family host guests in modern times at Highclere.

Lady Carnarvon details preparations, iternaries, menus and dress for weekend visitors. Bedrooms are filled with fresh linens, towels and flowers from Highclere's gardens. Although there are several bedrooms and bathrooms, there are only four ensuite accommodations (one at each of the four corners of the castle). Lady Carnarvon stresses the importance of dressing gowns if your room is one in which you must use a hallway to reach the nearest bathroom.

Guests at Pemberly Pines also enjoy fresh linens, flowers and (an exclusive!) custom embroidered bath towels.

Lady Carnarvon greets weekend guests with a hot cup of tea or champagne cocktail, (the recipe for the latter is included in the book).  Dinner dress is more relaxed than decades past, but women generally wear a cocktail dress and men, like Lord Carnarvon, favor a smoking jacket and velvet slippers.

Afternoon tea featuring lavender scones from Pemberly Pines garden.

I found some similarities to hosting a weekend at Highclere Castle and our own northern Michigan country home, Pemberly Pines. We greet Friday evening  guests with a freshly brewed cup of Earl Grey or glass of wine. Visitors' rooms are equipped with fresh sheets, flowers from our gardens and (something Highclere may not have!), custom-made  Pemberly Pines bath towels, courtesty Honeywood Embroidery.

Dress codes, however, are much, much more relaxed, except for tea time in the garden (and could I tempt Laird Gulley with velvet slippers/crocs?).

Dress code at Pemberly more relaxed than Highclere, except for tea time. 

If you are a fan of Downton Abbey and/or gracious living in general, you will enjoy this wonderful book filled with the flavors, festivities and fauna of Highclere, accompanied by beautiful pictures of the country estate.

Whether you are hosting a gathering at your 30,000 square foot English country estate or a humble northern Michigan cottage a mere fraction of that size, there's something surely to inspire all  in "At Home at Highclere".

At Home at Highclere, Entertaining at the Real Downton Abbey is available at the Highclere Castle website or Amazon.com.