Doctor Morton's creations are the workings of a nutty professor who creates beer in his lab amongst other tonics and tinctures for the modern man.
At least, that's what Abbeydale Brewery would have you believe. In reality, the Doctor Morton's range are the brainchild of Abbeydale artist and designer Ivan Bradley, who initially made them as humourous pumpclips - which are now collectors' items - rather than beer.
Now the range is popular with beer drinkers, the interesting approach to the labels and the story created for each brew making them fan favourites that are brewed tow to 3 times per month, cycling the styles. You can read more about the Doctor Morton's range here, but we're here to focus on the mischievous elvish creation.
Rude Elf has nothing to do with reindeer. It says as much on the label, if you can get close enough to read it. If you look past the label, it's a pretty straightforward pale ale that while not breaking any boundaries, is dangerously morish.
It's a pretty average aroma, with a little hoppiness and a slight touch of pine to it. The real beauty of this is in how sessionable it is, with an incredibly smooth flavour and mouthfeel that goes down incredibly well.
It's light, like all good pales, and has a crisp, definite finish which is brought to the fore with a slightly sweet flavour, almost fruity, almost not; but definitely there.
It's the kind of beer that you could - and would - consume a good 3 or 4 pints of quite happily without even realising, which make it a dangerously good brew.
The can is designed to be in the style of old English medicine adverts, mimicking the style and presentation of pamphlets used by snake oil salesmen and comment alike to convince people that their wares will help them heal, hurt or love.
The old-paper effect background with the single-colour print detail is very effective and, despite being basically a wall of text, eye catching.
The text is nonsense, banging on about cows with horns, elves and even ewoks at the nativity, but it's a funny piece of writing and a laugh to read when it's chilling in the fridge.
We got our hands on a lone can, gathering dust on the medicine cabinet shelves of Beer Central. You can get yours from the Abbeydale shop, but you'll need to buy these in packs of 6 or 24.
Still, it's medicine isn't it. So it's for your 'elf.