The people-watching at last weekend's St. Louis Microfest was enough to fill this column: college bros double-fisting cigars and beers, a dad pushing a baby stroller with a milk bottle in one cup holder, a beer glass in the other. A young woman at Saturday afternoon's American craft-brew session asked a pourer for "something Corona-y," eliciting laughter from a beer geek with a necklace made of hard pretzels.

Clearly, some people have more beer-festival experience than others. For a newbie, it can be intimidating: hundreds of beers from dozens of breweries near and far. Where to start? Ale or lager? Dark or light? Familiar favorite or first-time taste?

Here are my pointers. You'll have a chance to test them at the St. Louis Brewers Heritage Festival, June 11-12 in Forest Park. (Tickets and more information at stlbrewfest.com.)

First flight, low and light

Nothing will overwhelm your taste buds and ruin your ability to taste — and think — clearly like starting with a hugely hopped and high-alcohol India pale ale. Just like at a wine tasting, it's best to begin by sampling lighter-bodied and lower-alcohol choices. It helps to have at least a basic knowledge of beer styles, so you'll know to go for things like pilsners, brown ales and wheat beers before IPAs, stouts and double bocks.

Sniff, sip, savor, repeat

Once you've got a few ounces of liquid in your glass, evaluate the brew the way beer judges (and writers) do: Look at it, smell it, sip it. Does the beer look cloudy or clear? Is it golden or black or something in between? Does the carbonation produce a foamy head or leave a thin lacing at the top?

Next, give the beer a swirl and put your nose close to it. Beers give off a range of aromas, from fresh-cut grass to molasses. What do you smell?

Now the fun part: drinking. Swish the beer in your mouth so it hits all of your taste-bud sensors. Can you taste bitterness (from hops) and sweetness (from malts)? Are they balanced, or does one overwhelm the other?

Spit buckets are your friend

You would be surprised how quickly the alcohol in 2-ounce samples can catch up to you. You'd also be surprised at how many beers you thought would be great but end up being disappointing.

Don't be ashamed to use the spit buckets stationed near every table. If you feel like one sip is enough but still have more in your glass, dump the rest into the bucket and move on.

On a similar note, use the water pitchers at the tables to give your glass a rinse between beers; it'll help ensure that you get the aromas and flavors the brewers intended.

Hydrate

I don't want to sound like your mother here, but daytime, outdoor drinking is a recipe for dehydration if you're not careful. Plus, water helps keep your palate fresh. Check to see if you can bring your own water bottle into the event. Otherwise, pony up a few bucks for water at the concession stand.

Drink outside the box

Before you fall into your comfort zone of drinking beers you know and love, do yourself a favor and try some that are new to you.

As much as I wanted to race right over to the Schlafly, O'Fallon and New Belgium tables, those are beers I can reach for any time. Instead, I first tried beers from brewers that don't distribute in Missouri or from local brewpubs with new batches to sample.

Evan's Microfest highlights

Schlafly AIPA • Beer fans went nuts for the St. Louis Brewery's American India pale ale when they sampled the first batch at last year's Hop in the City festival. The brewery has been bringing draft and cask versions to beer events throughout the year, including Microfest. It's a hop bomb of bitter citrus flavors — think of biting into a grapefruit rind — balanced by a honeylike malt sweetness. Schlafly AIPA will be bottled for a June release.

Twisted Pine Big Shot Espresso Stout • This Colorado brewery made its Missouri debut at Microfest, which means we'll start seeing Twisted Pine's lineup of beer for sale here any day now. From what I tasted, the best was this coffee-infused stout that won a silver medal at the 2008 Great American Beer Festival. With the equivalent of almost a shot of espresso per pint, Big Shot has a coffee heft to rival hometown favorite Schlafly Kaldi's Coffee Stout.

Tallgrass Oasis • Kansas' Tallgrass Brewing Co. started distributing kegs to this state last month, about the same time it announced it would do away with bottles and instead package its beers in cans. We should see Tallgrass brews in St. Louis soon. Look for Oasis, a new summer seasonal that's described by the brewery as a "double Extra Special Bitter/IPAish beer." Translation: Bold, chewy malts with a big dose of hops.