Counting House

The final pub in the walk up Gracechurch Street is the Counting House.

The pub frontage is on Cornhill but you will find this secret rear antrance down St Peters Alley just past the Crosse Keys.

Another fine Fullers pub and another bank conversion again representing the last time the beer drinkers had to bail out the City.

Take a rest here, settle in and enjoy a delicious pint of ESB. If you're still with me you've earned it.

Lamb Tavern

Farther in the market is the famous, Lamb Tavern.

This is a Youngs pub.

It is another pub that is on CAMRAs list of heritage interiors and is famed for its etched glasswork and general architecture.

Unfortunately it was surrounded by scaffolding on my visit. Hopefully you will be luckier and be able to admire fully both the exterior and also the inside rooms.

New Moon

Opposite the Crosse Keys is Leadenhall Market and the first pub on the corner is the New Moon, a Greene King pub.

A typical market pub with a busy customer base that comes and goes throughout the day.

The long bar hosts the full range of Greene King beers including London Royal together with other Greene King brewed beers such as Old Speckled Hen.

Crosse Keys

Farther up Gracechurch street on the left you find the Crosse Keys.

This is a monster cavern of a place and represents Wetherspoons flagship London pub.

There will often be as many as eighteen different cask beers.

Take your choice using the screens which tell you which beers are available.

Watch out for Saturday evenings though. The pub closes early and sometimes choice is diminished.

Swan Tavern

Take the underground to Monument (not Embankment) and exit via the Gracechurch Street entrance for a swift walk around some more good pubs.

On the right, half way up, off the main road, down an alleyway, you will find this Fullers pub, The Swan Tavern.

There is no better way to start a City pub walk than with some London Pride.

Wetherspoons - Victoria Station

Always busy with folk waiting for trains and generally a good choice of beer.

Watch out for "coming soon" though - always trips me up as this is generally the beer I want.

Willow Walk

When walking either from Victoria to the Cask of vice versa it is hard not to drop in on this Wetherspoons as it is a perfect short cut between Victoria Station and Vauxhall Bridge Road.

As a Wetherspoons there is generally a good choice and you may wish to partake of a swift one.

The photo is of the Vauxhall Bridge Road back entrance.

Jugged Hare

Just around the corner on Vauxhall Bridge Road is the Jugged Hare.

A comfortable, well managed Fullers house.

In my experience the beer is always excellent here and it is always worth stopping off if you are passing.

A good traditional pub with a main bar to stand and sup a quick one.

There is a quiter back room and an upstairs seating area if you want to stay for longer or have something to eat.

Cask Pub and Kitchen

Easily my best pub of the moment and an easy winner for my best pub in October.

The Cask in Pimlico/Victoria has only been open in its current format for about a year but has quickly become one of the best pubs in the capital.

The bank of handpumps has grown quickly and now numbers ten. However, the is no brewed-in-a-bucket microbreweries here. The beers are cherry picked from some of the finest breweries in the country. Dark Star, Thornbridge and Brewdog beers are regulars and the guests are from other reputable outfits such as Marble.

There are regular meet the brewer evenings and the food is very good too with a menu that changes with the seasons.

If ten handpulls in insufficient there is a fridge crammed full of other bottled beers from around the world and also a bank of keg taps with some of Europe's finest lagers. Something for everyone and easily my favourite pub I have visited in October.

Sultan

Hop Back Brewery in Salisbury's only London pub and I defy anyone to tell me there is a better pint of GFB in the land. They must sell so many barrels of the stuff as it never fails to impress here.

A real beer drinkers pub, nothing in the way of food, no music or fruit machines, no pool table. Just beer and conversation - a perfect afternoon.