Brewer Dark Star plans 20 pubs in five years

West Sussex brewer Dark Star has announced plans to open 20 pubs in five years.

The business already has two pubs - a private lease of the Evening Star in Brighton, and a lease with Enterprise Inns of the Partridge in Partridge Green, close to its brewery.

Now it wants to open more sites, led by pub entrepreneur Heath Ball, who already has two sites in London.

He added: "We're delighted that Heath is as enthusiastic as we are to roll this out. We've known Heath for a long time and seen the passion that he brings to making great pubs."

Ball said: "I'm really looking forward to working with the team at Dark Star. The creation of a small group of pubs with Dark Star above the door appears to be a no-brainer - they will all have a great beer offering and no pretensions, where the traditional ale lovers and the beer enthusiast can all feel at home. We'll be looking for small town free of tie and new license sites across the South East."

Dark Star was founded in 1994 in the cellar of the Evening Star pub in Brighton, opening a purpose-built brewery in 2001 in Ansty near Haywards Heath before it moved to its current site in Partridge Green.

Among the beers it brews are Revelation, Hophead, and Dark Star Original.