Queen of the South, Tulse Hill, SE27

There were two ales on in here - St Austell Tribute and Caledonian Autumn Red (£4.20 a pint), with another handpump unclipped. Unfortunately both of the ales came up positively undrinkable, and in desperation I went for a Caledonian keg offering called Three Hop (£4.70 a pint), which the barman said was a craft ale. I have my doubts - it seemed to be a bit like a lager to me, but as anything can and seemingly is given the "craft" tag I suppose it might qualify. Anyway, as a lager it was above average in taste. The barman did the decent thing and didn't try and charge me the additional 50p. Neither was he interested in sampling the rank beers to test my judgement, and didn't reverse the clips, but as I was thinking of leaving about 45 minutes later someone else turned up (the boss presumably) and starting pulling through two fresh barrels. I guess I just must have been very unlucky that both ales were off at the same time. This one has gone upmarket - or at least it's aspired to. The flooring's black painted boards; there are black leather sofas and armchairs with low tables; the ceiling and bar couter front are painted dark charcoal; and all the tables have a single dahlia on them. It's all quite predictable really. There was a large TV on showing the rugby (but muted), with some Latin style "smooth" jazz being played - Stan Getz and Joao Gilberto I think. It made a pleasant change from the raucus pop music I usually have to listen to. On the plus side there's a nice tiled fireplace on the right, some nice original cornicing around some of the ceiling (unfortunately now painted black or charcoal), as well as several large potted foliage plants dotted around the place. It looks as if they've tried to recreate the look of an upmarket lounge, but the effect is diminished by the nondescript bunting strung across the room for some reason. An entrance vestibule on the right is no longer used as such, but a nice touch is that it's been incorporated into the pub as a very small snug. This pub is OK for what it is. I would have enjoyed my stay more had one of the ales been drinkable, but perhaps I was just unlucky.

Recently had a facelift, pubby feel with the bare floorboards. One entrance has been made into a snug (please make sure you note the raunchy wallpaper). 3 draft ales, Symons cider on tap and various lager. Very expensive Old Moot at £5.20 a bottle. £3.80 a pint for Tribute. Nice friendly bar staff.