Forget teabags, Darjeeling, and sugar cubes, as those all came later.

In a typical Regency drawing room, the tea tray arrived with a pot of loose-leaf bohea or souchong, a bowl of loaf sugar (to be broken apart with special tongs), and a small jug of milk. No hostess worth her salt would dream of adding cream, as that was only for cooking (adding cream to the tea will have every British reader tossing the book into the rubbish bin, so don’t do it!).

The lady of the house prepared each cup herself, measuring the leaves, pouring the boiling water, and offering milk or sugar to her guests. Tea was still expensive and stored in a locked caddy, which meant if you were trusted with the key, you’d made it socially.