The after-dinner mint wasn’t created by Red Tulip. When Rowntree’s After Eight Mint Chocolate Thins were introduced in England in 1962, Red Tulip’s Australian chocolatiers quickly copied the concept. A few decades later, no dinner party was complete without a classy chocolate-covered peppermint square served with coffee in its own unique envelope.
The brand first appeared on a variety of goods that were only offered by Grace Bros. in Sydney from their Cash & Carry Department prior to the establishment of the confectionary company, Red Tulip. The fact that Red Tulip brand fresh herrings were “Specially packed for Grace Bros. Ltd.” is noted in one advertisement, indicating that this was an early house brand.
The selection grew over time, starting with desiccated coconut and sweetened condensed milk in 1925, moving on to herrings in sauce, pure Ceylon tea, pure thick cream, walnuts, and self-raising flour in 1926, and ending with the rather intriguing Pea Soup Sausage in 1927 (cost: 2d per; yields 3 pints of delectable Pea Soup). Later came jelly crystals, fish paste, canned fruit, and bicarbonate of soda. Early in the 1930s, the brand appears to have fizzled out—at the very least, advertising stopped.
When Jewish immigrants by the name of Nassau started making and delivering chocolates from their Caulfield, Melbourne, home in 1939, it was a very different enterprise from Red Tulip. They established a factory and started producing chocolates under the Olgana brand on High Street, Prahran, after recruiting two additional partners. In 1942, the Red Tulip name was registered.
Red Tulip Scorched Almonds (chocolate-covered almonds), which were advertised after the war, claimed to be of “pre-war quality.” The business moved twice, taking over the former Kia Ora cordial plant in 1965, about the time its After Dinner Mints entered the line. The business continued to be located in High Street, Prahran. Red Tulip’s Easter eggs, produced in a factory established in 1950 in Port Melbourne, became particularly well-known in addition to the burnt almonds, block chocolate, and boxed chocolates. Evidently, their Bunties were made to rival Smarties.
When Cadbury Schweppes acquired the business in 1988, the Prahran factory was shut down, and production was transferred to Scoresby and Ringwood. However, after-dinner mints eventually lost their appeal, and Cadbury ceased producing them, much to the chagrin of many who formed a Facebook group calling for their return.
On Cadbury chocolate Easter eggs, the Red Tulip brand has endured. However, it seems that the chocolate’s recipe was altered in 2013, which sparked a furious reaction from aficionados. Even a petition to return the eggs to their natural appearance was circulated.