Luxury Sussex castle shares the secret of a perfect afternoon tea

For many of us on a typical busy day, afternoon tea involves putting a tea bag in a mug, pouring on hot water and adding a dash of milk. We might snatch a biscuit from the packet if we are feeling particularly decadent but it rarely gets much better than that.

Which is a great shame.

At its best, afternoon tea is not merely a meal. It is an event. Like all great occasions it should be enjoyed in the shared company of others, in luxurious surroundings, served on exquisite bone china, with the finest ingredients – and it should not be rushed.

There are few better locations than Amberley Castle which is more than 900 years old and is nestled snugly between the glorious splendour of the South Downs and the wildbrooks, just to the west of the ancient thatched village which shares its name.

Afternoon tea has long been a focus here but in a post lockdown world the Castle has turned it into an art form.

When we visited, tea was being served in the stunning vaulted restaurant on the first floor and in the three historic reception rooms below. With wind and rain pelting against the ancient castle walls, we seated ourselves in the drawing room where a roaring fire transported us from this autumn’s ghastly grey weather to a warmer, happier place.

Afternoon tea should be a leisurely journey and not a 100m sprint. We began ours with a glass of local Sussex sparkling wine from Nyetimber while we selected our hot drinks.

This is an opportunity to be brave. Even experimental. The choice of coffees include the many alternatives to which we have all become accustomed – from latte to flat white – while the hot chocolates dare to be different with everything from milk chocolate hazelnut to caramel and white.

But the Newby tea range is exceptional – from English Breakfast, Darjeeling and Lapsang Souchong to Apple Strudel, White Peony and Ginseng Oolong.

The final of these proved a great choice.

The food arrived beautifully tiered. First the savoury course. Beneath a silver dome, thin toasted sandwiches were set above resplendent tiny quiches, sausage rolls and other delicacies; with sandwiches beneath.

We took our time – chatting, relaxing by the fire, comparing notes on the tea, enjoying the fine bone china on which it is all served. The afternoon slipped by as graciously as the tea.

Then, like the second half of a play, the curtain was raised on the sweet treats – fortunately not too sweet.

There were light warm scones with clotted cream and jam in their own glass miniature churns; and delicate delights with, of course, some in obligatory chocolate with which no afternoon tea would be complete.

Contrasting textures, taste and colour are the hallmark of a good afternoon tea and this one was perfect.

Tea time has rarely been such a relaxing, elegant occasion. The Duchess of Bedford would have approved.

The Full Afternoon Tea costs £50 per person and the Nyetimber Afternoon Tea Flight – with Nyetimber matched to each course giving you three tasting style glasses of Sussex sparkling wine – is £85 per person. As Christmas arrives there will be a festive twist to the menu.

There is a Black Friday 20% discount offer currently running. It is available until December 1 with vouchers available to spend between 1st January and 27th March 2024. https://www.amberleycastle.co.uk/hotel/offers-packages