Consort doesn’t bake brined fish, thanks

Which smarter-than-thou food magazine is sending out subscription entreaties that could veer vertiginously close to the old Publishers Clearing House? I’m not talking the old nag that has poor saps somewhere in Middle America cheerily calling me twice a week to check up on my subscription, the one I let lapse many years ago. Nah, this is the one that seems to be stealing a page out of the Taste of Home playbook, with its “no distracting ads” and “free gifts.” “Rate adjustment alert” is just another way of saying “bend over — you’re still paying too much.”