"I'm not a restaurant guy," explained Smith, owner of East End Brewing Company. "I'm barely a pub guy. I avoided it like the plague." But 10 years in, with demand high and space plentiful in the brewery's new Larimer home, Smith couldn't fight it any longer. And judging by the buzzing crowd that filled the brewery on a recent Friday night and Smith's toothy grin the transition hasn't been so bad. In October, East End secured a brewpub license, meaning that rather than just (liberally) sampling from the taps, you can drink a pint there. A week of events in December officially launched the new identity. But the next chapter in the life of a local craft-beer pioneer had just begun. First, expect more to munch on. Though some brewpubs offer a token item that will never sell (what Smith calls the "$45 can of soup") to satisfy state law, East End is serving up a fine cheese plate furnished by Wheel and Wedge. Smith is supplementing that with guest food trucks, and hopes to expand to a small, locally focused menu in the coming months. Expect more to drink as well. The bigger Larimer space leaves room to experiment, which means racks of barrels for aging beer, and equipment dedicated entirely to Brettanomyces, a yeast strain that imparts funky, sour flavors. East End's Brett Hop, for instance, takes its standard Big Hop recipe and ferments it with "Brett," creating a tart and altogether different beer. On my way out, Smith pointed to a Christmas tree in the tasting room and said, "That's a hint of what's to come." Nestled at the top of the tree, in place of a star, was a gleaming green can of East End's flagship IPA. So if your New Year's resolution involves drinking more Big Hop, it's about to get a whole lot easier.
Source http://www.pghcitypaper.com/pittsburgh/east-end-brewing-is-now-a-brewpub/Content?oid=1799819
Dr Pepper Snapple Group, Keurig to Bring Products to Keurig Cold System - Yahoo Finance
Katie Sargent Reports Load More LAS VEGAS (AP) Imagine a world in which your garage door opens automatically as you pull into the driveway. The living room lights and heater turn on perhaps the oven starts warming up, too. In the so-called "smart home," cars, appliances and other devices all have sensors and Internet connectivity to think and act for themselves, and make your life easier. We're not there just yet, but we're getting closer. The smart-home concept is known in tech circles as the Internet of Things. Current iterations primarily include our ability to control gadgets such as lights and security alarms or view data remotely through a smartphone app. At the International CES gadget show in Las Vegas this week, manufacturers will promote more devices and functionality. Some gadgets will be able to talk directly with one another, not just to an app. The four-day show opens to the public Tuesday. The Internet of Things could mean big business for gadget makers. The Consumer Electronics Association projects sales of smart energy and security systems alone will total $574 million this year, a 23 percent increase from 2014. Although that pales by comparison to the $18 billion spent on TVs and displays, growth has been swift. In terms of people smartening up their homes in earnest, though, it will probably be another two years before devices are cheap and widespread enough for the typical consumer, says Eduardo Pinheiro, CEO of Muzzley, which makes a hub that allows devices to talk to each other. For now, the smart home is more about possibilities than practice. Many companies exhibiting at CES are laying the foundation for what a smart-home system will eventually do, hoping to entice consumers to start thinking about upgrading to smart gadgets. It's not always an easy sell. Consider wearable devices that track fitness and other activities. In many cases, the novelty wears off quickly, and devices end up in drawers. But what if a wearable device that tracks sleep could tell the coffeemaker to start brewing as soon as you awoke? When the coffee's done, what if the sprinklers on the front lawn automatically turned off so you didn't get wet walking out the front door to work? View gallery Jerome Bouvard demonstrates the Parrot Pot at CES Unveiled, a media preview event for CES Internatio For example, Lucis Technologies will soon ship a smart-lighting device called NuBryte that can learn your behavior, such as what time you tend to come home. Sensors can turn on the night light if you wake up to use the bathroom but switch on brighter lights during the day. A coffeemaker from Smarter will soon use data from fitness trackers such as Fitbit. If you had a bad night of sleep, the coffeemaker will know to make the java stronger that morning. Other products focus on better notifications: a battery for a smoke detector to alert you on your phone when the alarm goes off, or a bracelet that vibrates when the baby cries in its crib. (Moms rejoice: the bracelet is even smart enough to alternate which parent it alerts to get up.) "It's got to be something people are seeing it can do and want it to do," says Chris Penrose, AT&T's senior vice president for the Internet of Things. "It's got to make their lives better and be incredibly easy to use." "True consumer value will come when devices work in concert with one another and in many cases across manufacturers," adds Brett Dibkey, a Whirlpool Corp. vice president. "The home adapts to the way consumers live rather than the other way around." At CES, Whirlpool will showcase dryers that can run at a slower, energy-saving cycle if you aren't home and thus aren't in a rush. The dryer integrates with Google Inc.'s Nest smart thermostat, which has sensors to figure out that no one's home and then lowers the heat automatically. Meanwhile, a smart-home hub called DigitalStrom plans to take cues from Nest. If Nest is trying to cool down the house, for instance, DigitalStrom will lower automated window shades to block out sunlight. These are the building blocks for an eventual automated home. Once those building blocks are in place, services can better predict what you want. For example, Netflix is already good about recommending movies to watch based on your preferences, but it might suggest something different if it could read data from a wearable device or camera and tell that you're with friends, or stressed out, says Shawn Dubravac, senior director of research with the Consumer Electronics Association. As we get closer to being able to live like the Jetsons, manufacturers will have to convince consumers that the technology is secure from hackers and that convenience and peace of mind are worth any risks. Ann Poletti, who now uses the Nest thermostat at her home in San Francisco, said her first apartment burned down, so she is sensitive to making sure all her appliances are off. The Internet of Things would let her check remotely. "Toothbrushes and ironing boards, one day it will all be connected. I think that's great," says Poletti. "Some people don't want all the data out there. I'm worried about access to my bank account, less so about whether my heat is going on or off." Personal Finance - Lifestyle
Source http://news.yahoo.com/raise-homes-iq-smart-gadgets-center-stage-ces-081004068.html
Raise your home's IQ: smart gadgets take center stage at CES - Yahoo News
Source http://finance.yahoo.com/news/dr-pepper-snapple-group-keurig-123000286.html
More >> By The Associated Press Keurig is recalling more than 7 million of its single-serve coffee brewing machines after reports that a number of them had spewed hot liquids and injured dozens of users. More >> Updated: Monday, December 29 2014 4:34 PM EST2014-12-29 21:34:49 GMT The parents of a local man murdered in 2011 in Springfield Township were due in court Monday after court documents say the father fired two shots at a woman the day after Christmas. More >> The parents of a local man murdered in 2011 in Springfield Township were due in court Monday after court documents say the father fired two shots at a woman the day after Christmas. More >> Updated: Sunday, December 28 2014 6:29 PM EST2014-12-28 23:29:21 GMT Walmart has been turning to digital means to bring in more business. Now, the retailer is allowing customers to trade in full or partially-used gift cards for one to be used at Walmart-owned stores. More >> Walmart has been turning to digital means to bring in more business. Now, the retailer is allowing customers to trade in full or partially-used gift cards for one to be used at Walmart-owned stores. More >> Updated: Monday, December 29 2014 8:22 PM EST2014-12-30 01:22:52 GMT Toledo couple Robert and Desirae Strauss were in court Monday afternoon to take separate plea deals in the murder of Ypsilanti man Brian Martin. More >> Toledo couple Robert and Desirae Strauss were in court Monday afternoon to take separate plea deals in the murder of Ypsilanti man Brian Martin. More >> Updated: Monday, December 29 2014 8:15 PM EST2014-12-30 01:15:46 GMT The Ottawa County Sheriff's Office says one person has died in a plane crash on State Route 163, just north of an airport near Port Clinton. More >> The Ottawa County Sheriff's Office says one person has died in a plane crash on State Route 163, just north of an airport near Port Clinton. Toledo family asking for help to bury mother after fatal fire Jalisa Neal died of smoke inhalation in a home in the 600 block of Oswald the weekend before Thanksgiving. She left behind her 4-year-old son Steven Shane. More >> Jalisa Neal died of smoke inhalation in a home in the 600 block of Oswald the weekend before Thanksgiving. She left behind her 4-year-old son Steven Shane. More >> TECUMSEH, MI (Toledo News Now) - There is a lot brewing in downtown Tecumseh. In just a few short months, the Tecumseh Brewing Company will be serving up drinks. Tecumseh native Tim Schmidt and California transplant Kyle Dewitt have been talking about opening brew pub for years, ever since they met at one in Ann Arbor. They are now just weeks away from turning it all into reality. [We] just got to talking about things and asked each other what we wanted to do, and this is sort of a dream, said Schmidt, a brewer. Although there will be food offered, beer will be the main attraction at the Tecumseh Brewing Company - and lots of it. We're going to have 16 different taps here. It's going to constantly rotate, we're not going to have anything that's going to be the same over and over again, said Dewitt, general manager of Tecumseh Brewing Company. Our selection will be wide-ranging, so we haven't really put any limits on what we're going to do in here. Tecumseh city officials say they couldn't be happier for what the future holds for the downtown area. We're extremely pleased and thrilled that it's coming here to Tecumseh, said City Manager Kevin Welch. It's something we don't have at this point in time, nice addition to our downtown, especially in this block. The Tecumseh Brewing Company is located in the 100 block of West Chicago Boulevard. It's scheduled to open the first week of March. Follow Toledo News Now: 
Gulf Puts Mexico on Defensive By Dan Murtaugh and Robert Tuttle 4 hours ago Content preferences Done A price war is brewing between Canada and Latin America over who will satisfy U.S. Gulf Coast refiners' hunger for heavy oil. The new Seaway Twin pipeline will almost double the amount of heavy Canadian crude coming to Gulf terminals and plants to about 400,000 barrels a day starting in January, according to Calgary-based ARC Financial Corp. The shipments are growing even without the Keystone XL pipeline, which has been delayed for six years because of environmental opposition. More from Bloomberg.com: Oil Falls to 5-Year Low as Supply Glut Seen Lingering The Canadian supply will square off against crudes from Mexico and Venezuela that have traditionally fed refineries along the Texas and Louisiana coasts. State-owned Petroleos Mexicanos widened its discount for U.S. buyers in December by the most since August 2013. Valero Energy Corp. and Marathon Petroleum Corp., which invested in special equipment to refine heavy crude, stand to gain the most from the Canadian supply. "Something's going to have to give," said Ed Morse , Citibank's head of global commodities research in New York. "It's going to have to be combination of Latin American countries exporting less into the U.S. or Canadian crude being re-exported and competing with crudes in other markets, particularly Europe." More from Bloomberg.com: U.S. Bond Sentiment Is Worst Since Disastrous '09 Transport South New pipelines and rail terminals enabled more Canadian oil to head south to higher-value markets, partially offsetting a 48 percent collapse in global prices since June as the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries refused to cut production to counter a global glut. The discount of Western Canadian Select priced in Hardisty, Alberta, to Mexico's Maya crude has narrowed this year by more than half to $11 a barrel. Heavy Canadian crude will cost the same in Houston as Maya arriving by tanker, including the cost of transportation, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. More from Bloomberg.com: Search for AirAsia Jet Widens, but Did Delay Ruin Best Chance of Rescue? Pemex widened the discount it gives U.S. buyers of Maya to $3.70 a barrel in January, from 90 cents in November. Pemex spokesmen didn't respond to several e-mails requesting comment on the company's market strategy. Latin American producers will price their crude to make sure it's still attractive, said John Auers , executive vice president at Dallas-based Turner Mason & Co. an energy consulting firm. "It won't all disappear anytime soon," he said. The Gulf Coast "is the natural home for it." Higher Prices West Texas Intermediate fell $1.12 to $53.61 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent, the global benchmark, dropped $1.57 to $57.88 on the ICE Futures Europe exchange in London. Canadian output has grown in the last decade as rising prices made it economic to use steam recovery and bitumen mining in the Alberta tundra. Shipments to the U.S. rose 63 percent in five years to a record 3.1 million barrels a day as of September, U.S. Energy Information Administration data show. The flow to the U.S. increased without Keystone XL, an $8 billion conduit that TransCanada Corp. wants to build from Hardisty to an existing network in Steele City, Nebraska. The project is awaiting a decision by the Nebraska Supreme Court on a legal challenge and then a final determination by President Barack Obama 's administration. Enbridge Inc. operates a system that can ship 2.5 million barrels of crude from Canada to the Midwest, and last month finished a line extending to Cushing, Oklahoma. Enbridge and Enterprise Products Partners LP built the 450,000-barrel-a-day Seaway Twin to double capacity to Houston from Cushing. TransCanada's existing system can bring 540,000 barrels a day from Canada to the U.S. Midwest, and the company built a 700,000-barrel-a-day line from Cushing to Texas last year. Fewer Imports While Canadian shipments have grown, imports from elsewhere contracted. U.S. refineries took in 4.3 million barrels of crude a day from the rest of the world in June, the lowest amount since 1992. Mexico sent 675,000 barrels of heavy crude a day to U.S. Gulf refineries in September, down from 835,000 for that month in 2012. Venezuelan shipments fell to 700,000 from 900,000. If Canadian crude can't find a home on the Gulf Coast , producers may re-export it elsewhere. The U.S. bars most exports of its own oil, while allowing shipments of foreign petroleum that is kept separate from domestic supplies. The Commerce Department granted 86 re-export licenses from October 2013 through August. Cargoes have gone to Switzerland, Spain, Singapore and Italy this year, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. Heavy Processing Countries including Brazil and Saudi Arabia are investing in heavy oil plants now, though most of the ability to process those crudes is on the U.S. Gulf Coast, where refiners invested billions to buy cokers and desulfurization units to process heavy crude from Latin America. "U.S. refineries built out their capacity to run heavy barrels," Auers said. "Refineries in the rest of world aren't built to run heavy barrels." The lack of alternative markets for heavy crude means Latin American countries will battle to maintain their share in the U.S., said Stephen Schork , president of the Schork Group in Villanova, Pennsylvania. "We haven't seen anything like this," Schork said. "This would be a first." To contact the reporters on this story: Dan Murtaugh in Houston at dmurtaugh@bloomberg.net ; Robert Tuttle in Calgary at rtuttle@bloomberg.net To contact the editors responsible for this story: David Marino at dmarino4@bloomberg.net ; Dan Stets at dstets@bloomberg.net Dan Stets More from Bloomberg.com 
The flow to the U.S. increased without Keystone XL, an $8 billion conduit that TransCanada Corp. wants to build from Hardisty to an existing network in Steele City, Nebraska. The project is awaiting a decision by the Nebraska Supreme Court on a legal challenge and then a final determination by President Barack Obama 's administration. Enbridge Inc. operates a system that can ship 2.5 million barrels of crude from Canada to the Midwest, and last month finished a line extending to Cushing, Oklahoma. Enbridge and Enterprise Products Partners LP built the 450,000-barrel-a-day Seaway Twin to double capacity to Houston from Cushing. TransCanada's existing system can bring 540,000 barrels a day from Canada to the U.S. Midwest, and the company built a 700,000-barrel-a-day line from Cushing to Texas last year. Fewer Imports While Canadian shipments have grown, imports from elsewhere contracted. U.S. refineries took in 4.3 million barrels of crude a day from the rest of the world in June, the lowest amount since 1992. Mexico sent 675,000 barrels of heavy crude a day to U.S. Gulf refineries in September, down from 835,000 for that month in 2012. Venezuelan shipments fell to 700,000 from 900,000. If Canadian crude can't find a home on the Gulf Coast , producers may re-export it elsewhere. The U.S. bars most exports of its own oil, while allowing shipments of foreign petroleum that is kept separate from domestic supplies. The Commerce Department granted 86 re-export licenses from October 2013 through August. Cargoes have gone to Switzerland, Spain, Singapore and Italy this year, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.