Choc Trumpets: Where Has The Happy Chocolate Ending Gone?

For many, a Tip Top Trumpet on a hot summer's day is as Kiwi as a pair of jandals and a day at the beach.

But it appears the old favourite is missing something - at least some of the time.

The apparent variation was discovered by a disgruntled Herald reader who, after buying numerous Boysenberry Trumpets in the name of science, found her favourite icecream now lacked that solid piece of chocolate at the bottom of the cone.

A trip to the corner dairy by the Herald confirmed the fear. Out of 10 Trumpets, seven were missing that happy, solid-chocolate ending.

But Tip Top says the famous "chocolate plug" is still part of the Trumpet recipe.

Marketing manager Stephanie Hague said it was one of the many reasons Kiwis love the Trumpet.

"Years and years ago the chocolate at the bottom of the cone was just a result of how we coated the inside of the cone - it simply ran down the inside and pooled at the bottom.

"When we perfected the coating process and stopped the chocolate pooling, Kiwis asked us what had happened to their loved plug of chocolate. And so we brought it back by adding some extra chocolate."

She said the chocolate plug was now part of the Trumpet's DNA - "although it can vary in size a little".

The Trumpet, launched in 1964, is one of Tip Top's most popular products.

A 1985 advertisement featuring a 15-year-old Rachel Hunter cemented the Trumpet in New Zealand pop culture history and launched the young model's career.

It is not the first classic New Zealand treat to cause a stir.

Over the years, adjustments to Cadbury Creme Eggs, Minties and Pascall Milk Bottle lollies have outraged many and last year, Nestle bravely altered its Milo recipe.

- NZ Herald