I have sampled the Reese’s holiday shapes. Eggs, pumpkins, trees, ghosts, hearts, and assorted other members of the chocolate-and-peanut-butter family. I take research seriously, particularly when it involves chocolate and peanut butter.
My finding is clear: the big Easter egg tastes better.
I don’t mean the little eggs in the bag. They have their place, but I’m talking about the bigger, individually wrapped egg. The one you unwrap with the expectation that this is going to be a proper snack.
Why is it better? My theory is the chocolate-to-peanut-butter ratio. The egg has that broad middle where the peanut butter gets to be the main event, with enough chocolate to make it a Reese’s. You take a bite and both ingredients know their jobs.
A pumpkin is good. A tree is good. I’m not throwing either one out of the candy dish. But they don’t quite give me the same bite. Every year I try the other shapes again, because a responsible researcher must remain open to new evidence. Every year the egg wins.
I have also tested the different coatings. Milk chocolate is my standard. Dark chocolate gets my approval. White crème does not.
Sorry, not sorry.
I don’t need anyone to agree with my ranking. If you love the pumpkins, enjoy them. If the Christmas trees make your season, I’ll celebrate that for you. I am willing to accept that other people have different candy preferences, provided they accept that I have conducted extensive fieldwork.
My only real complaint is the egg’s availability. Why should the best shape report for duty only around Easter? The peanut butter doesn’t know what month it is. The chocolate has no calendar. Put an egg on the shelf in October and I will buy it without asking why it isn’t shaped like a ghost.
I can already hear the objection: But then it wouldn’t be special.
Maybe. Or maybe I’d be happy more often.
Until the candy-makers see reason, I’ll continue my seasonal research. I’ll try a pumpkin. I’ll sample a tree. I may even revisit a heart in the spirit of fairness.
Then spring will arrive, I’ll unwrap the big egg, and the case will be closed again.
Leave a Reply