651 Merwin S t.

Jewett New York 12444

518.734.0632 

adenaov@gmail.com

Time and time again

About Us

"Words can barely describe the experience we had at Adena for our wedding... We have the most amazing memories and wish we could relive the entire experience. We cannot wait to be back for our anniversary for all the years to come!"

- Janet & Nick

Our Story

Adena has a long history of being lovingly shepherded by close-knit family. Her current stewards, a family of artists and humanitarians, have decades of combined event planning and production experience -- including their own wedding at Adena Orchard & Vine. Renee Blinkwolt and Scott Sheppard fell so in love with the property through their own wedding process that they joined the Adena family, marking the newest chapter in the idyllic property's storied history.


Before Renee and Scott joined the team, the Kulesa and Kuperstein families spent generations investing hopes, dreams, and love into Adena, devotedly restoring the Kirkman Barn from its original use as a dairy barn to the gorgeous wedding and event venue that it is today. The many lives of the property on Merwin Street in the Catskills can be explored in the timeline below under Our History. We look forward to welcoming you into the Adena family and helping us write the next chapter!


Take a video tour of our history

Our Values

INCLUSIVITY & WELCOMING

We embrace your humanity! We are approachable, genuine, and welcome you and your community - with joyful curiosity! - exactly as you are. We buck the wedding factory system, and work with you to create an event that celebrates your unique 'you'ness.


TRANSPARENCY & AUTHENTICITY

We are honest, straightforward, and trustworthy. We create space where you and your community can be your whole, authentic selves. We won't surprise you with hidden fees or rules, our rates are clear and upfront, and we strive to create an atmosphere where you feel comfortable expressing your needs, and boundaries.


COMMUNITY & FAMILY

We are family-owned, and we define family expansively. You are putting down roots in our orchard and we welcome you to watch them grow & enjoy their fruits. We strive to help you feel grounded, comfortable, and at-ease here.


CREATIVITY

We are artists and humanitarians, and we recognize the creativity in you! We are responsive to your impulses, strive to say “yes!” to them, and use our expertise & 20+ years of events experience to anchor you in what’s most important.



We can’t wait to get to know you.


Our History

  1. 1839
  2. 1873
  3. 1880
  4. 1882
  5. 1885
  6. 1924
  7. 1938
  8. 1951
  9. 1978
  10. 1998
  11. 2000
  12. 2001
  13. 2007
  14. 2016
  15. 2022
  16. Today
  1. Kirkman Soap Company

    John Kirkman founded the company in 1839 and grew it to be one of the largest soap companies in the world. The Kirkman Soap Company would eventually lose out to the Colgate Company that also purchased property in the area.

  2. The Merwins

    Kids… move those rocks. The clearing of the land for farming while forming the old stone walls in backfields are most likely from the Merwin clan. At one point, there were said to be 49 Merwins attending the local school.

  3. Tower Mountain Retreat

    Proprietor Emmons Pond and his family open a temperance retreat for decent folk to escape the dirty city for fresh air, cool water and clean living.

  4. The Tower Mountain House

    The Tower Mountain Retreat changes its name to the Tower Mountain House. Emmons builds a large addition and greatly improves the property with gravel walks, one hundred maple and ornamental trees and allows booze. Party on Emmons!

  5. The Kirkman family

    Loving the mountain views and one particular apple tree, the Brooklynites purchase vacation property on Tower Mountain. Their family would summer there for more than three generations.

  6. The Tower Mountain House burns

    We can not find exactly when, but around 1924 the Tower Mountain House burned to the ground. Today, the foundation, barn, entry pillars and stone wall guarding the circular driveway are the only remains.

  7. The country house

    The Kirkman family purchases the land across the street to build a house to be given as a wedding gift to their daughter. The land is the former Tower Mountain House plot...now our property.

  8. The Maben farm

    The Mabens prosper during the heyday of the Catskill dairy industry. Today, the barn still has the stanchions in the milking area and signs tacked to the walls with the cows' names, sire, and date of birth.

  9. Adena

    Alana’s parents purchase the old dairy farm with the country house and name it Adena, meaning “adorned, noble, tender” Alana would grow up spending every summer there. Additions are made, including the sunroom that is now the bride's getting ready room.

  10. 10011 to 12444

    Alana & Kevin escape the city weekly and travel up the Hudson with friends in quest for outdoor dining, bonfires and homemade cider. Always thinking...how can we do this for a living?

  11. Alana & Kevin get hitched

    As far as we know, it was the first wedding ever held on the property and it was a barnburner. Over 300 guests were treated to sushi, ribs, an ice cream truck and a live Jazz band.

  12. The Rosedale barn

    The 1820 dairy barn was numbered, dismantled, moved 10 miles and rebuilt on Merwin Street. Being next door, it made sense for Alana & Kevin to buy it in 2018 when it came on the market...how fortuitous.

  13. The Tower Mountain House grows

    A major renovation by Alana’s parents expands the house to over twice the size. Did they realize at the time that they were creating the perfect setup for a wedding venue?

  14. Adena Orchard & Vine

    Finally, during an intense wine drinking session, Alana & Kevin get the brilliant idea to turn Adena into a wedding venue. “The best wedding venue ever” is created.

  15. Renee and Scott Get Married
    July 2022

    Renee and Scott host a community of their closest family and friends at Adena.

  16. The Adena Family

    In a style that is authentic and rooted, Renee, Scott and the rest of the Adena family help couples experience the wedding that they and their community will remember for the rest of their lives.

Our Team

Adena Orchard & Vine is led by Renee Blinkwolt and Scott Sheppard, who were married here in 2022. Renee has twenty years experience project managing, owning/operating small businesses and producing events at scale. Scott is a writer and performer with a love for people, and bringing them together. Joined by their mothers Candia and Nancy, and close friends Brittany and Jes, this disparate family has been closely intertwined for decades.


The "Adena Kids," as we lovingly refer to Renee, Scott, Jes, and Brittany, all have backgrounds steeped in nonprofit off-Broadway theater making as artists and producers, bringing their unique perspective and experience to the wedding event business. We thrive on creating impeccable moments of community and joy, and are always looking for innovative ways to make bespoke experiences personalized to each couple. We met through a matrix of overlap: Brittany and Jes went to undergrad together a lifetime ago, and Brittany and Renee went to grad school together a shorter lifetime ago. Renee, Scott, and Jes all met making theater together for the same nonprofit. Renee was a member of Brittany's wedding party (also known as the "Prom Committee"), and Brittany and Jes were both members of Renee and Scott's wedding party (and wedding production crew....).


The "Adena Moms," made up of Scott's mom Nancy and Renee's mom Candia, can often be found fondly wiping down counters, hand-stitching custom drapes, or making the Adena kids a delicious warm meal after a long day of making dreams come true.


This intimate group believes strongly in redefining "family" to have a more expansive scope, and hopes you'll consider becoming a part of ours.

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