Sunday, July 28, 2019

Afternoon Tea at The Governor's Mansion

The Governor's 1893 Mansion in Vermont



This is the fourth post in my series of touring Vermont.  (Please click on any picture to make them larger.)  I have lived in this state for 16 years and rarely stopped to look at the sights.  Starting in 2017, I made the effort to stop and visit some of the places that I see on my travels. This does not mean that I would need to spend money, but that I would take a few moments of rest and visit some of these places, instead of just rushing through life and never taking a scenic break.

The tour:  Afternoon Tea at The Governor's Mansion 

I had a great many appointments and meetings to attend all throughout last summer.  These were stressful at times and certainly tiring.  But we did our best to enjoy the drives and try to see the scenery along the way.

Sign for Afternoon Tea on the grounds of the Mansion in Vermont


One day I noticed an advertisement for Afternoon Tea at a lovely, historic bed- and- breakfast.  It was only 10 minutes away from a meeting we were to attend in that area.  I called to ask a few questions and then made a reservation to have a formal tea for two.  One of my grown daughters would be with me. I was told a simple tea with scone would cost $8.50 each.  This was an affordable treat that would be such a rare blessing!


Entryway with Coat-rack and umbrella stand

The grounds and the mansion were lovely and old fashioned. The architecture of the building was stunning.

The main entryway with fireplace


Once we stepped inside, the main entryway was very large and elegant. It had a formal fireplace and beautiful seating.  One could sit by the fire to get warm in winter.  Off to the side of this area were two large parlours.

The Cozy Tea Room

The hostess of the establishment led us into one of the main parlours. It is the tea room.  She let us look around and just enjoy the peaceful room as she went off to do her work. She told us to, "Stay as long as you would like."  It felt like all the stress of the day just went away as we enjoyed this restful place.

A Piano in the Parlour

There was a piano, with sheet music, in the room. An enormous library of assorted books was on the back wall.  There were cozy chairs with little tables of books, games of chess, and little dishes of wrapped candies.  It was the perfect room to visit and enjoy the company of others.  We happened to be there during the slow season, we were told, so there was only one other small party of two with us for afternoon tea that day. Each group at our own tables.  It made it extra quiet and restful for us.


The Tea Cart


A beautiful tea cart was already set up when we arrived.  This is where the hostess served from. I would love to have my own tea cart here at our home!

The ceremony of her serving and setting up the tea was lovely and such a treat.

She brought in a block of some kind of wood and placed the teapot on it, at our cozy little table.  She asked if we would like milk or lemon with our tea?  One of the party smiled and said, "I would like both."  The hostess was taken aback and gently chided with, "Oh, no. You never have both.  You have lemon or milk. But not both."   The party chose lemon.  I was incredibly amused!

Next she asked who would like to serve the tea?  From what I understand, it is an honor to be the one to serve.  My daughter chose to do this special task.

Our Tea Table in the Parlour

The hostess showed us how to set up a beautiful strainer on top of each tea cup. Then the tea was poured through this into the cup.  It was like a lovely ritual of serving a pleasant tea.

The tea was the most delicious I have ever had in my life. Any time we each wanted a bit more, my daughter graciously did her duty, using the strainer to pour more.  "Would you like more tea?" She would ask. It was wonderful!

The scones were served on a tray, along with jam and clotted cream.  We helped ourselves to each, by spooning some on our plates and then using a little knife to spread them on our scones.  They were incredibly delicious!  I could not believe I was enjoying such an elegant treat in such a beautiful place!

As we were getting ready to leave, I went back into the main entryway and took a picture of the staircase which led to the guest rooms.

Hallway and Staircase at the Mansion


I spotted a chalkboard on the wall. It had the breakfast menu for the guests to see.  It said:

"Breakfast
Fruit
Maple Crunch Oatmeal
Scrambled Eggs and Garlic Tomatoes
Scones and Jam"




Chalkboard with breakfast menu

The entire experience was inspiring.  It made me want to have formal teas at home, just for our own happiness with the family. It was relaxing and wonderful.

Thank you for having tea with me at the Governor's Mansion here in Vermont!


** My next stop will be a visit to The Vermont Country Store. We have an appointment in that area coming up soon.**


The First Tour was -  A Vermont Christmas Tree Farm.

The Second Tour was - The Trapp Family Lodge in Stowe Vermont.

The Third Tour was - King Arthur Flour in Norwich Vermont.


Blessings,
Mrs. White

From the Archives -

A Homemade Present for Grand-baby - Tea Napkins.

Humble Tea Time- The Importance of Formal Ceremony at Home.

Joyful and Peaceful Living - Simplicity of Old Fashioned Homemaking



- To find out more about this blog, or Mrs. White, please visit our About page. -

 






Find Home-keeping Inspiration, in Mrs.White's book -Mother's Book of Home Economics .  Paperback, 312 pages.










9 comments:

Deanna said...

Lovely Tea Time at a lovely place. I would have enjoyed this a great deal.
Thank you for sharing,
d

Linda said...

Thank you so much for sharing your beautiful outing, you described everything so well, I felt like I was there :) Historic homes have such a lovely elegance and charm about them, especially when the wood is polished and the furnishings are all looked after. I thought the blackboard menu sounded wonderful too. Blessings to you ~ Linda

Joyful said...

What a beautiful mansion and great place to spend some quality time. The tea service made it all the more special. I think the idea to do this at home is also a wonderful idea and a good way to entertain some guests.

Jean | DelightfulRepast.com said...

Mrs White, I'm so glad I didn't miss this post! Afternoon tea is my thing. There is nothing more relaxing and special than afternoon tea in a lovely setting, your own home or someone else's or a beautiful tearoom. You'll find all kinds of posts on my blog to help you give your own afternoon teas--how to give an afternoon tea; how to brew tea; how to make scones, lemon curd, clotted cream, tea sandwiches, etc. I chuckled when I read about the person who wanted both lemon and milk (I AM assuming it was milk rather than cream because cream should never be put in tea!) because I did that once when I was 12. Not good! I had always had my tea plain or with milk, but I was distracted when someone offered me lemon and forgot I'd already put in milk. When I dropped the lemon in, the milk curdled.

Larry & Amanda said...

Thank you for sharing. It has always been my dream to visit your lovely state one day. I can't wait for your next visit! I ordered a denim skirt from the Vermont Country store this summer. It is now my favorite skirt! I'm seriously considering ordering another one to hold back for when this one wears out. ~ Amanda

Amelia said...

*Happy sigh* Oh this was so nice...

I just so enjoyed the visit, I see how uncluttered these homes are and I want mine to be like that too! : )

Afternoon tea sounds wonderful, I think I will take lemon in mine? My German grandma, Amelia, who I am named after (I never met her she passed away when my dad was a little boy), but Daddy told me she put milk in her afternoon tea. I always think of her sweet, cheerful smiling face from photos when I hear of afternoon tea.

Thank you for sharing this wonderful visit, it sounds like your daughter did a beautiful job! I just loved the tour!

Love, Amelia

SIRVIENDO AL SEÑOR said...

WOW QUE HERMOSO PASEO HERMANA, QUE CASA TAN IMPRESIONANTE, PARECE MUY ANTIGUA, ME GUSTAN LAS CASONAS ANTIGUAS, LA DECORACION DE ANTAÑO ESTILO RURAL, DE CAMPO, AMO TODO LO ANTIGUO. USTED SI QUE NO PIERDE EL TIEMPO, PASEANDO, APROVECHANDO EL VERANO, HAGALO MIENTRAS PUEDA, CUANDO LLEGUE EL FRIO INVIERNO, ESTARA MAS TIEMPO DENTRO DE SU CASA, HACIENDO ALGUNA RICA COMIDA PARA SU HERMOSA FAMILIA Y COSIENDO O TEJIENDO. ¿CUANDO SUBIRA UN NUEVO VIDEO? ME GUSTA SABER DE USTED SHARON. BENDICIONES.

Suzanne said...

Dear Sharon,
What a lovely tea room and how nice to have a special outing with your daughter. I love those kind of outings with any of my daughters, too. I just returned from VT where we had a dolls wedding at Tasha Tudor's. You would have loved that! We also had a lovely reception at a nearby hotel with all the dolls in attendance. I love The Vermont Country Store, but find it a bit stuffy and crowded during tourist season. I hope you're able to go and have room to really browse there.
Take care,
Suzanne

Deborah Montgomery said...

Thank you for sharing your lovely day with us. What a treat to have tea in such a beautiful setting. And I love it when we are inspired to recreate beauty in our own homes, something to take away from the day and give us pleasant memories. xo