Asheville in The New York Times Magazine

Asheville has made some appearances recently in The New York Times Magazine in the form of a one-time area resident and a few commemorative local beers.

The first instance — perhaps somewhat old news by now — was earned by way of “The Ethicist,” a regular “Dear Abby”-style column that deals with ethical dilemmas in everyday life. In the March 25 issue, the column challenged “omnivorous readers … to make the strongest possible case” for their diet by submitting their arguments, in 600 words or less, for consideration by a panel of judges that included food and culture writer Michael Pollan and author Jonathan Safran Foer.

Jay Bost, an environmental studies teacher at Warren Wilson College until this year, penned the winning entry, published in the May 6 issue. Bost’s essay, “Give Thanks for Meat,” argues that a vegetarian diet can be just as environmentally taxing as a meat-eating diet. ” … [E]ating meat raised in specific circumstances is ethical; eating meat raised in other circumstances is unethical,” he writes. “Just as eating vegetables, tofu or grain raised in certain circumstances is ethical and those produced in other ways is unethical.”

The other, more recent mention appeared in the July 8 column “The One-Page Magazine,” a quirky compilation of news, cultural trends, humor and other items. Although the piece, “Toasting Scotty,” is less than 50 words, Wedge Brewing Company and Highland Brewing Company are the toast of the miniature article. “The microbreweries of Asheville, N.C., are commemorating local history,” it says, going on to name Wedge’s Julian Price Pilsner and Highland’s discontinued Great Gatsby Abbey, once brewed exclusively for the Grove Park Inn. Read the scant but high-profile remaining words here.