James Smith was born in the famous brewing town of Burton upon Trent in England. It was three decades and a move to Australia later before he became fully immersed in beer, however. A journalist by trade, he began exploring and writing about the country’s burgeoning micro-brewing culture soon after arriving in Melbourne in 2008. Since christened ‘Crafty’ in reference to his website, The Crafty Pint, he writes about beer for Epicure, the Halliday Wine Companion Magazine and Time Out, and is a founder and festival director of the annual Good Beer Week festival in Victoria. The Great Australian Beer Guide is the follow-up to his first book 150 Great Australian Beers.