Perhaps this may not apply to American readers, but the Australian and New Zealand (and English, natch) readers would be aware of the genius that is the Devonshire Tea.
Cornwall has recently trademarked its cornish pasties so that, unless it is made with Cornish ingredients and/or in Cornwall, a baker cannot call it a Cornish pasty. It’s just a pasty. Curiously this is a seriously big deal here in the UK. While I agree it is positively anal, I am also aware of the steaming piles of excrement I have been served that allegedly is a Devonshire Tea. As such I am advocating Devon trademarks the tea name. This would, also, be a big deal.
A Devonshire Tea is a pot of tea, milk, sugar if you will, two scones (either plain or fruit), a pot of jam and a massive pot of Devonshire clotted cream. Something like this:
Did you spot the fatal error in the presentation of the Tea? Yep, not enough cream. The pot should be twice that size. You don’t mess with Devonshire people when it comes to their cream, as the tea shop owner found to her horror when she presented this measly amount of cream to the table. I’ve never seen a group of old aged pensioners bay for blood before.
The ideal of the proper Devonshire Tea is to smear a bit of jam on the scone, then pour teetering piles of cream onto the scone, preferably bigger than your mouth. The problem with a proper Devonshire Tea is you need clotted cream. If the cream is not thick enough that a spoon can stand up in it (and no, really whipped doesn’t count) then it’s not a proper Devonshire Tea.
That’s not to say it’s not nice to have jam and cream on scones. It’s bloody nice in fact. It’s just truly sublime here. And I’d encourage all of you to visit this magnificent county and have a proper Devonshire Tea here. You will thank me.
Away For A Bit 
Did you know, my dear, that you can get cream that thick at the Jersey cow dairy down near Mt Compass? Perhaps we should do a run down there when you’ve reacclimatised. T’would be a lovely way to spend a day together.
Ah Nicola, you beat me to it!!!! The Alexandrina cheesery,is between Mt.Compass and Jo and Mardi’s place, Nige.I was there last Sunday for a birthday lunch, but go there regularly on the run down to the girls place.They do this cheese curd that I love, it squeaks when you eat it. The milkshakes are to die for as is the cream.My arteries are groaning as we speak!!!
Nic and KB, sounds a good plan.
Don’t be suprised if I pooh pooh it as not the real deal though.
we Devonshire people are VERY discerning when it comes to clotted cream.
But hell yeah… lets go
I am ready to lay on transport to the Alexandrina cheesery when KAB and NV are ready for it!
I too am an afficianado of the cheese curd. I eat the damned things like lollies, so try to buy them only rarely!
Alas ladies (and Nigel) I know of nowhere that you can find such a treat in the USA. But I had a similar treat in a little shop in the Blue Mountains of NSW but I suspect it was not the “real” Devonshire tea and clotted cream.
The thing about Devon clotted cream is that it is not just thick, but it has a quality all of its own. Slightly yellow with a slight crust. There is nothing quite like it……oh bother I am drooling