About
Since 2024 Dark Star beers are brewed at Fullers brewery, Chiswick.
The Dark Star Brewing Company was born in 1994 in the cellar of a pub in Brighton. With a brew plant only marginally bigger than an enthusiastic home-brew kit the characteristic style of hoppy beers was developed and tried out on the willing guinea pigs at the bar. As with all the best ideas, the business was planned on the back of a beer mat, driven by a few beers and funded with money we didn’t have.
A few years on, well 25 years actually, we find ourselves in Partridge Green, just south west of Horsham, West Sussex, with a 45 barrel brewhouse. It’s all been a bit of a blur really. None of us really wanted to leave the cellar of the pub, but apparently more and more people liked drinking the same beers as us, so we needed to brew more…
What’s in a name…: The brewery is named after a song by the band The Grateful Dead, although if you have a heard a different story, use that, never let the truth stand in the way of a good yarn.
In February 2018, Dark Star was acquired by London-based brewer, Fuller Smith & Turner. In January 2019, Fuller Smith & Turner sold its entire drinks business, including The Dark Star Brewing Company, to Asahi Breweries.
The brewery and taproom at Partridge Green was closed in 2022 and production moved to Meantime brewery, and following the closure of that in 2024, production shifted to Fuller’s Griffin brewery.
The Dark Star Brewing Company was born in 1994 in the cellar of a pub in Brighton. With a brew plant only marginally bigger than an enthusiastic home-brew kit the characteristic style of hoppy beers was developed and tried out on the willing guinea pigs at the bar. As with all the best ideas, the business was planned on the back of a beer mat, driven by a few beers and funded with money we didn’t have.
A few years on, well 25 years actually, we find ourselves in Partridge Green, just south west of Horsham, West Sussex, with a 45 barrel brewhouse. It’s all been a bit of a blur really. None of us really wanted to leave the cellar of the pub, but apparently more and more people liked drinking the same beers as us, so we needed to brew more…
What’s in a name…: The brewery is named after a song by the band The Grateful Dead, although if you have a heard a different story, use that, never let the truth stand in the way of a good yarn.
In February 2018, Dark Star was acquired by London-based brewer, Fuller Smith & Turner. In January 2019, Fuller Smith & Turner sold its entire drinks business, including The Dark Star Brewing Company, to Asahi Breweries.
The brewery and taproom at Partridge Green was closed in 2022 and production moved to Meantime brewery, and following the closure of that in 2024, production shifted to Fuller’s Griffin brewery.
6.6/10
—
Appearance 6
Aroma 7
Flavor 7
Texture 6
Overall 6.5
Cask conditioned - gravity dispense - Pigs Ear BF. Chestnut colour with nice syrupy malt. OK in mouth. Dryish finish. Bit ashey, nice malty bitter.
Tried
from Cask
on 22 Dec 2006
at 08:04
6.9/10
—
Appearance 10
Aroma 5
Flavor 7
Texture 6
Overall 7.5
Small beige head over opaque black body. Light milky burnt licorice aroma. Soft, sweet earthy licorice taste with light burnt aftertaste. Some alcohol heat. Fruity, with banana flavours and notes of milky chocolate. Dry aftertaste. Nice! A beer to savour. (0.5pt on cask.)
Tried
from Cask
on 05 Dec 2006
at 09:54
7.6/10
—
Appearance 8
Aroma 7
Flavor 8
Texture 8
Overall 7.5
(Cask at White Horse, Parson’s Green, London, 26 Nov) Dark brown, almost black, with ruby notes. Small beige head. Malty, roasted nose with prunes, raisins, chocolate and hints of blueberries. Malty, fruity taste with notes of dried fruit (prunes, raisins), chocolate, spicy hops and liquorice. Slightly sweet and vinous. Well balanced and warming. Very nice.
Tried
from Cask
on 02 Dec 2006
at 17:15
7.8/10
—
Appearance 8
Aroma 7
Flavor 8
Texture 8
Overall 8
(Cask at White Horse, Parson’s Green, London, 25 Nov) Dark brown, almost black, with pale brown head. Malty, roasted nose with notes of coffee and wild berries. Malty, roasted taste with distinct coffee notes, bluberries, blackberries and a lovely deep bitterness in the finish. Complex, but with perfect balance between malt, fruit and hops. Absolutely brilliant.
Tried
from Cask
on 02 Dec 2006
at 15:14
7.2/10
—
Appearance 6
Aroma 8
Flavor 8
Texture 6
Overall 7
(Cask at Wenlock Arms, London, 24 Nov) Pale amber colour with frothy white head. Fruity, hoppy nose with distinct grapefruit notes. Fruity taste with a distinct grapefruit note, hints of lemon, and a nice hoppy finish. Very nice variation on the American pale ale style.
Tried
from Cask
on 02 Dec 2006
at 10:09
7.6/10
—
Appearance 6
Aroma 8
Flavor 8
Texture 6
Overall 8.5
(Bottle 50 cl) Courtesy of kook. Clear, dark brown with a tint of red and an almost non-existing head. Low in carbonation. Vinous aroma - port and raisins. Very full-bodied with lots of roasted malt, dried fruit, port and alcohol. Some bitterness. Lovely. 211006
Tried
from Bottle
on 21 Nov 2006
at 15:20
5.2/10
—
Appearance 6
Aroma 5
Flavor 5
Texture 6
Overall 5
Casked (4.8%). Dark brown colour with some slight red hints, almost no head. Fruity hops in aroma along with spices. Flavour is fruits, berries and a bit wood. Also spices and some grassyness. Atleast a casked beer that is different, but not so sure if it’s in a good or bad way. More bad I would say...
Tried
from Cask
on 15 Nov 2006
at 23:19
4/10
—
Appearance 4
Aroma 4
Flavor 4
Texture 4
Overall 4
On tap at Evening Star, Brighton. Gold colour with thin white head. Not a huge aroma. Quite good aromatic creamy hop on what is basically a thin watery lager. Served too cold. Some pukiness toward the end of the palate. Quite drying, not great.
Tried
from Draft
on 11 Nov 2006
at 04:18
8.2/10
—
Appearance 8
Aroma 8
Flavor 8
Texture 8
Overall 9
Cask handpull at Evening Star, Brighton. Aromatic autumnal ale according to the pump clip. Copper colour with lasting beige head. Aromatic American hop aroma, bit of cat pee. Good in mouth, decent juicy malt, before sherberty earthy hop cuts in and lasts and lasts. Beautifl. Utterly drinkable. Gorgeous hop/malt balance. Resiny piney hop.
Tried
from Cask
on 11 Nov 2006
at 04:15
7/10
—
Appearance 6
Aroma 7
Flavor 8
Texture 6
Overall 7
Cask, Jan Primus. Clear golden color, short white head. Aroma of hop and some malt. Very bitter taste, some malt, grassy. Although I was more in the mood for bock actually, the beer was quite good.
Tried
from Cask
on 04 Nov 2006
at 05:59