Can either newbie beat the best ice block in New Zealand?

When I crowned the Cyclone the best ice block in New Zealand in 2023, I argued that it had earned the crown by being singular. As a Streets product, the Cyclone had no competitors, not from Tip Top and not from the rest of Streets’ range. It was simply the only ice block like it on the market, and as such stood out from the freezer pack.

But now, three summers later, there are two new ice blocks on the scene, very much trying to get in on the Cyclone love.

Popsicle Fruit Stack (Tip Top)

You may have seen the posters around town for this fruity number. It’s a belated entry into the “fruit but fun” genre of ice block from Tip Top. They have Frujus of course, and the classic lemonade Popsicle, but those are ice blocks heavy on the ice. In fact they have a “fruit tube” which is diabolical (I believe it ranked somewhere close to dead last in 2023) that is essentially a solid block of coloured ice. The Fruit Stack is new territory. It’s a sorbet, for starters. The texture is noticeably softer and denser than Tip Top’s other fruit offerings.

I really enjoyed the strawberry flavour at the top, while the orange in the middle was quite poor in comparison. It says it has “choc drops” but given the drops aren’t able to be bitten into, I’d say it’s more like “choc shavings”. A random and fairly redundant inclusion but I suppose it helps with the fruit look.

The Fruit Stack is tasty but Tip Top has perhaps swung too far the other way in that it feels closer to fruit ice cream on a stick. In short, not near as refreshing as you’d expect from the packaging.

Would I eat it again? Yes.

Is it better than a cyclone? No.

Twister Monstaahh (Streets)

First of all, hate that name spelling. Insult to injury is the tagline which is, verbatim, “sour!&sweet”. Terrible stuff. But where Streets fails in copywriting, it makes up for in the fact that it is the maker of the original Cyclone. This new Twister monstrosity is a near identical texture to the Cyclone – a sort of sorbet but with a bit more freshness to it. It promotes its use of “real fruit” and “no artificial colours and flavours”. The colours I can vouch for. I was shocked to find my tongue hadn’t changed colour at all after eating it.

As for taste, though… advertised as being apple, blueberry and lemon, it tastes as if those fruit were given an extra dose of sugar and steroids and crafted into a strangely girthy (sorry) ice block. It tasted like a purple zombie chew on a stick. Is that bad? Not necessarily, but the target market is clearly small children and not tired adults.

When Streets already have the Cyclone I’m not really sure why they needed a worse version of it as well, but perhaps they simply needed a new product to take up room next to the Popsicle Fruit Stack.

Would I eat it again? Given I managed to have two in 24 hours by accident, no.

Is it better than a cyclone? Absolutely not.

Final verdict

Neither is really worth purchasing ahead of a Cyclone. But if you’re looking for something new, I’d go for the Fruit Stack. If you are a true sweet tooth or sour head (AKA if you still buy and eat TNT lollies as an adult) then give the Twister a go.

Whatever you do, don’t try both one after the other. I guarantee you will feel sick and maybe need to leave work early.