LUDLOW, Vt. – According to the Brewers Association, The great state of Vermont topped the list of U.S. state breweries per capita again in 2012. There are 26 breweries and 625,741 citizens in Vermont – that’s one brewery for every 24,067 people. In recognition of that honor, Okemo Mountain Resort will host its fifth annual Hops in the Hills Beer Festival and Chicken Wing Championship from 1-6 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 24. Jackson Gore will be the setting for enjoying the great outdoors and sampling a great variety of beers from local and regional brewers. McAllister Drive and Girls, Guns, and Glory will provide live musical accompaniment to the beer tasting and chicken wing chomping.

An entry fee of $25 ($20 if purchased in advance) will include admission to the Hops in the Hills Beer Festival, a logo pint glass and several tickets for beer samples. Additional beer tickets will be available for purchase at the Beer Ferstival. Some of the breweries expected to attend are: Olde Burnside Brewing Company, Long Trail Brewery, Lake Placid Craft Brewery, Saranac Brewery, Harpoon Brewery, Magic Hat Brewery, Dogfish Head Craft Brewed Ales, Switchback Brewing Company, Stone Brewing Company, Rising Tide Brewing, Pabst Blue Ribbon, Fiddlehead Brewing Company, Trapp Lager Brewery, Green Flash Brewing, Otter Creek Brewing, Shed Brewery, Wolavers Organic Brewing Company, Shipyard Brewing, Woodchuck Cider, Citizen Cider, and others.

IDs will be checked at the gate. Entry is free for designated drivers and attendees under 21. Food and soft drinks will also be available for purchase.

During the event, several local restaurants will vie for the highly coveted title of Okemo Valley Chicken Wing Champion. Stone Hearth Inn & Tavern, in Chester, Vt., was the winner last year. Wings will be priced at 12 for $10 or 6 for $5 and wing tasters will determine the champion by voting for their favorites. The winner will be named at the end of the day.

Okemo Mountain Resort, best known as a winter sports destination resort, is fast becoming a summer site for outdoor adventure, live concerts and festivals.

On Friday nights throughout the summer season, the lawn in the courtyard at Okemo’s Jackson Gore Inn is transformed into an outdoor concert venue featuring popular regional entertainers. Admission to the Jackson Gore Outdoor Music Series is free and the grounds open at 5 p.m. Concerts are slated to run from 6 to 9 p.m. Families are welcome and all attendees are encouraged to bring lawn chairs or picnic blankets. In case of rain, the concerts will move indoors. Dining options include traditional fresh-from-the-grill fare, or full-service dining with an al fresco seating option at Jackson Gore’s Coleman Brook Tavern.

Okemo’s ever-evolving Adventure Zone is open to concert-goers with mountain coaster rides, trampoline bungee jumping. miniature golf, disc golf, zipline tours, Segway Personal Transport tours, the Amp Energy Big Air Bag, a climbing pinnacle, plus, new this summer, a self-guided treetop challenge course.

In addition to the Jackson Gore Outdoor Music Series and Hops in the Hills Beer Festival, Okemo will host its annual Parrothead Party with Jimmy Buffett tribute band The Cocabanana Band, on Oct. 12.

To learn more about about Hops in the Hills and other events at Okemo Mountain Resort, or to make a reservation for a zipline or Segway tour, call (802) 228-1600. For more information about Okemo, visit okemo.com.