Laurel Hood of Laurel’s Wine Shop.

CANNON BEACH — After over 40 years of serving the community, Laurel’s Wine Shop will close at the end of February.

The store on Hemlock Street was a local favorite where old and new friends would gather to connect with one another and sample and buy wine, including some made by founder and owner Laurel Hood.

Pursuing a longtime dream, Hood had aimed to run a business by the time she was 30 years old. By 1983, she had one. Laurel’s Wine Shop opened its doors to a Cannon Beach that looked a little different than it does today.

“There was no internet, there was no Costco, there was no wine section in the grocery store,” she said. “And nobody went to visit wineries. I wanted it to be kind of like a library, having a little bit of stuff representing wines from all over the world.”

As the town grew and changed, Laurel’s Wine Shop remained a nook where locals could go to escape overpacked tourist seasons and hectic holiday weekends.

“There are very few places in Cannon Beach now where the locals can get together and have a conversation without having to get up and leave because someone else needs the table,” she said.

With a year-round population of about 1,500, Cannon Beach hosts over 750,000 visitors annually.

“I think the other thing, too, is that I have always given people a great bottle of wine for a great price,” Hood said. “But it’s more personal. I remember everybody’s tastes. It’s funny, because I’ve had these customers for all these years to the point where I’m selling wine to the children of the people that I started selling wine to 40 years ago.”

Through the store’s four-decade run, Hood had also served both as mayor and as chairman of the city’s Planning Commission.

“I had to juggle a lot,” she said. “I was trying to run a business. If there was a meeting or something that needed to happen that I needed to be there as mayor, I would have to close up shop.

“It’s funny, because some of the issues that we’re struggling with now in the community are issues that we were struggling with 25 or 30 years ago … In recent years, I think with the advent of Airbnb’s, the housing issue has gotten so tough for people that it’s difficult to keep a sense of community.

“That’s part of the reason why I really had to struggle with making this decision, because I know that the shop has been a place where people do connect. And that won’t be around for people anymore. But I’m not leaving. I’ll still be here.”

Hood runs her own vineyard in Yamhill County. In 1988, she bought back the land that her grandparents had owned in the 1930s. She and her husband built and farmed the vineyard themselves, but that didn’t mean they were alone in their endeavor.

“I had never been a farmer before, so I had a huge learning curve,” she said. “But I had already been selling wine for all the people that started the industry. So David Lett from Eyrie Vineyards, who was the first to plant pinot noir in the Willamette Valley, gave me a couple cuttings. And then Dick Erath from Erath Winery sent over his 16-year-old son with a tractor, because I didn’t have a tractor when I started.

“Everybody helped me get started. And that’s one of the hallmarks of the Oregon wine industry.”

Since her husband’s passing nine years ago, Hood had been trying to manage her downtown wine shop alongside her vineyard, which is over two hours from Cannon Beach. Eventually, she said, it just got to be too much.

“If I had to choose between the shop and the vineyard, the vineyard is my heart and soul,” she said. “And I know I’m disappointing a lot of people, but what’s been really sweet is that in the last week, since I posted something about closing on Facebook, I’ve had so many people come to visit.”

Hood said the store will remain open through next weekend. Though the wine selection on the shelves has begun to dwindle, the community continues to supply a steady stream of love and support.

“Over the years, I’ve enjoyed having a business where almost all my customers want to give me a hug,” she said. “That’s what I’ll really be missing — the people.”