Did you know that the honey bee is the official state insect of Georgia? Did you even know that the states declared official state insects?

Me neither.

Hershey’s has released a new line of “Flavor of…” candy bars to celebrate… I don’t know, the states? They’re not all inspired by insects: the other bars are Flavor of New York Hershey’s Cherry Cheesecake, Flavor of California Strawberry Kit Kat, and Flavor of Texas BBQ Payday.

I was fascinated that Georgia got Honey Roasted Reese’s instead of the Georgia Peach Reese’s or “Big Bowl of Chicken and Dumplings” Reese’s. But back to the honey bee for a second: did you know that the honey bee is also the official state insect of Arkansas, Kansas, Louisiana, Maine, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, New Jersey, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah, Vermont, and Wisconsin? I’m not making that shit up, either. Rhode Island boycotted and didn’t even bother to appoint an insect to represent them.

Anyway, I think it’s clear that the Honey Bee is the official insect of the United States of America.

Flavor of Georgia Honey Roasted Reese’s, aka Flavor of GA/AR/KS/LA/ME/MS/MO/NE/NJ/NC/OK/SD/TN/UT/VT/WI Reese’s, could actually be a rehash of the 2003 limited edition Honey Roasted Reese’s. I was only 17 years old at the time and didn’t know this candy existed, so I won’t be able to say for certain.

Did you know the average life expectancy of a worker honey bee is only six weeks? Queens can live for 3-4 years so long as they are disease free. That is typically my goal too, but I struggle.

Hershey’s Honey Roasted looks and smells just like a Reese’s cup. Here are some of my favorite facts about honey bees:

Honey bees are assholes and rob honey from other hives when there’s a shortage in their colony.

One ounce of honey can give a bee enough energy to circle the fucking planet.

Honey bees do a “waggle dance” to announce where they’ve found nectar (I do this too).

Anyway, I’m not in love with the Honey Roasted Reese’s.

Taking my first bite, there is a sharp taste of sweet honey – like sharp as a bee sting. This isn’t the same “honey roasted” flavor you’d find in traditional honey roasted peanuts if that’s what you were expecting. It’s straight honey through and through, and thought the ingredients don’t identify any real honey, the flavor is on point.

Unfortunately this doesn’t really work for me. The peanut butter inside a Reese’s is always incredibly sweet, and adding more pure sweetness doesn’t elevate it. It’s a nuanced sweetness but it detracts from the saltiness of the peanut butter too much for my preference. I don’t feel the honey complements the peanuts like it does in honey roasted candied peanuts. The honey flavor feels like it’s just layered on top of normal Reese’s – separate and disjointed. You throw chocolate in that mix and I feel it’s all a bit much. Rather have a regular Reese’s.

If you’re a huge fan of honey or you’re actually a bee, you’re gonna love this. I do not.

Honey Bee Waggle Dance Rating: 8 out of 10

Rhode Island’s Official State Insect Rating: 0 out of 10

Overall Rating: 6.5 out of 10

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