Reese's Peanut Butter Cups
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Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups (History, Pictures & Commercials)

Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups is a chocolate candy that comes in the form of a circular “cup” of chocolate and peanut butter. One of the most popular snacks in the United States for many years, Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups are intended to be a candy for people of all ages to enjoy. The original Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup is made from milk chocolate and peanut butter, but other versions exist that use ingredients such as dark chocolate or white chocolate.

This classic candy is the flagship product of Reese’s brand and is among the most popular. Reese’s has enjoyed success for the taste of its products, and their Peanut Butter Cups remain a fan-favorite among the brand’s lineup. First created in the year 1928 by HB Reese, this snack has enjoyed a strong following since its inception.

Please leave a review or any memories of this snack in the comments at the bottom of this page. Thank you!

Reese's Peanut Butter Cups

History

First introduced in the year November 15, 1928, the history of Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups starts with its inventor filling the need for demand in the market. The man who invented Reese’s, Harry Burnett Reese, otherwise called H. B. Reese, had attempted to create a popular candy and candy company for years before Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups introduction. Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups were invented 5 years after H. B. Reese’s created the Reese’s Company in his basement in his third attempt to get a candy company off the ground.

At first, they were just called “Peanut Butter Cups” or “Penny Cups”. Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups release in 1928 was a quick response to a commercial customer who told Reese in 1927 that he was having difficulty keeping stocked with chocolate-covered peanut butter candy. The seller had been buying chocolate-covered peanut butter candy from a supplier who could not keep up with demand and asked H. B. Reese if he could sell him a product to fulfill his customer’s desires.

H. B. Reese created Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups and gave it a unique taste, using Hershey’s chocolate as a core component in its ingredients, which also include high-quality peanut butter, as well as at least 1 secret ingredient. The roasted peanuts that helped make his Peanut Butter Cups so good were unknowingly the product of a malfunction of the original roasting equipment used to make them, and after buying new roasting equipment it was found that the taste of the Peanut Butter Cups had changed. H. B. Reese performed some tweaks and experimenting to get the taste of the product back to the original familiar Reese’s taste.

The success and popularity of Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups represent a culmination of much hard work by H. B. Reese, who was on his third attempt to create a successful candy company. H. B. Reese had always been good at making money and had a very large family, and was known to be a kindhearted man. H. B. Reese began working at the Hershey’s Company and was inspired to create a candy company of his own after learning of a large amount of money Hershey’s was making, with at one point learning the founder of Hershey’s was earning $75.00 a minute at the time.

H. B. Reese made many attempts to create a successful candy company, leaving Hershey’s company to strike out on his own, selling stocks to raise funds and risking it all while providing for a family of 16 children and a wife. However his plans failed twice, but H. B. Reese’s third attempt had resulted in a great company, known for high-quality chocolate treats and its Peanut Butter Cups were his company’s best product.

The Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups became the only product sold by the Reese’s Company for a time, after other products the company sold were dropped when business was hard, but the product remained successful and helped keep the company and brand strong.

Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups owes some of its success to the Hershey company, not only was its chocolate used to create the product, but the company founder had a friendship with H. B. Reese, letting him come back into the company when he needed, and helping him secure credit. Eventually, on July 2, 1963, the Reese’s Company was merged with Hershey’s after H. B. Reese son’s assumed control after their father’s death, and the company is now operated as a subdivision of the Hershey Company as of 2019.

On June 9th, 1956, the Reese’s Company was expanding with a new plant, in addition to at least one they already owned. Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups remains Reese’s company (now a subsidiary) and brand’s best-selling product as of 2019. In 2012, according to Advertising Age and Euromonitor International, Reese’s brand was the top-ranked ranked candy in America, with annual sales of $2.6 billion.

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Globally, Reese’s brand stood at No. 4 In 2017 and Reese’s brand of chocolate products was the most popular sold snacks in U.S. convenience stores, with Reese’s being 62% larger than the next brand. Reese’s brand makes up over 47% of all seasonal sales in convenience stores in the United States. Reese’s Cups, as well as the rest of Reese’s brand, tends to be a bit more popular in the United States than in the rest of the world, but the product and brand have managed to achieve a fan base outside the U.S.

Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups have many different varieties in addition to its classic version, as well as spin-off products. Some variation of the original Reese’s Cups are their white chocolate and dark chocolate varieties, Big Cup versions and a Reese’s Thins version was announced in 2018.

Some variations of the normal Reese’s Cups include limited-edition Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup Oreo, Reese’s Ice-Cream, and Reese’s Cup flavored peanut butter. The Reese’s brand will often leverage its popular products together to create new products out of the combination, such as Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups Stuffed with Reese’s Pieces (Reese’s Stuffed With Pieces).

Reese’s Cups have a loyal fan following and have been a very popular product since its inception, with fans favoring its product’s flavor and many variations. Reese’s Cups have come a long way since its inventor dreamed them up to fill a need in the market for peanut butter and chocolate snacks.

Reese’s Cups are not the only type of peanut butter cup in existence, but they are surely the most popular. The hard work of the inventor H. B. Reese, the Hershey company, friendship, family, timing, all of it came together to help Reese’s Cups become one of the most well-known candy products in the U.S and the world.

The Man Who Invented Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups

The man who invented Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups is Harry Burnett Reese, otherwise known as H. B. Reese. He was known to be a kindhearted man, who had a big sense of family. Speaking of family, H. B. Reese had 16 children, 8 daughters, and 8 sons.

H. B. Reese spent years and several attempts to create a successful candy company, with his friendship with the founder of the Hershey company and former boss, and his high-quality confections, including Reese’s Cups, he finally succeeded. H. B. Reese died in 1956 and his candy empire was taken over by his sons after his passing, who eventfully merged their father’s company with the Hershey company.

The Year Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups Was Invented

Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups were invented in the year 1928 and released in November that year. The inventor, H. B. Reese, first started trying to come up with the idea for Reese’s Cups in 2017. H. B. Reese was challenged to create a chocolate and peanut butter candy product to fill a shortage that a commercial businessman was having, as his supplier at the time could not keep up with this customer’s demand.

The Company That Makes Reese’s Cups

The company that makes Reese’s Cups is The Hershey Company, an American-based snack company. Hershey’s is one of the largest chocolate manufacturers in the world, and are known for their flagship product the Hershey Bar, as well as for owning other candies such as Twizzlers.

The Popularity Of Reese’s Cups

Reese’s Cups sure are popular, with the King Size Reese’s Cups being the most popular candy product sold in U.S convenience stores in 2017. What makes Reese’s Cups so popular depends on who you ask, but many people clearly love the taste, and it is widely considered a classic confection in the United States. Reese’s offers a unique and original taste and one that has been around for many years.

It is seen in many households and is an easy snack for kids to eat, sold in convenient size options. In the end, Reese’s gives everyone a quality snack that they can pick up in a wide range of amounts, be it single packages or in larger cartons. Then the candy treats its consumer to an enjoyable tasting experience that many seem to love, judging from the candy’s wide success and the many fans that express enjoyment of the taste and product.

Logo

Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups Logo

Info On Buying

Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups are extremely popular, standing as one of the most commonly sold candy products in stores. Reese’s Cups are extremely common and can be found almost anywhere. You may be able to find Reese’s Cups being sold at stores like Costco, Walgreen’s, and Family Dollar. You can check below for a larger list of stores that may sell Reese’s Cups.

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You can also buy Reese’s online via various outlets, this can be good for those looking to buy Reese’s Cups in bulk or those looking for a particular flavor. You can check below for offers on buying Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups online. It takes longer to buy them online as they have to be shipped to you, but it is a good way to deal hunt to find what you are looking for.

Stores That Sell

Here is a list of stores that may sell Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups:

  1. CVS
  2. Rite Aid
  3. ShopRite
  4. Walmart
  5. Walgreen’s
  6. Sam’s Food Stores
  7. Stop And Shop
  8. Family Dollar
  9. Dollar General
  10. Dollar Tree
  11. Staples
  12. Big Y
  13. Krauser’s
  14. Sams
  15. Cigo
  16. S&S Mini Mart
  17. Shell
  18. Sams Club
  19. Costco
  20. Aldi

Review

This review is for the normal version of Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups.

The package of Reeses’s installs a feeling of warmth and nostalgia, maybe because it’s something familiar since childhood. There is a sense of cogitative ease looking at a package of Reese’s. The Reese’s Cup itself is packaged neatly in its paper wrapper, looking almost flower-like at a glance.

There is not much smell given off from the treat at a distance, although up close a chocolate and peanut butter smell can be picked up. The smell of this candy is light and sweet. The cup is solid yet somewhat soft when held in hand, and quick to melt

An enjoyable mix of a hybrid of chocolate and peanut butter is immediate after biting into the soft peanut butter cup. The outer part of the cup has a more firm and chocolate taste, with the inner part having an extremely soft texture and a more creamy peanut butter taste. despite the layering present in Reese’s Cups, the taste of the chocolate and peanut butter is hard to separate.

The taste of both chocolate and peanut butter are very closely intertwined in a unique but highly enjoyable mixture of a nearly inseparable taste of chocolate and peanut butter.

While some candies that have both peanut butter and chocolate will have them layered, clearly separated, or try to make them combined, the taste of each flavor tends to stand out in other products so that one can separate them in their taste. Not so with Reese’s, the flavors of the two prime tastes here are so closely linked that it is hard to tell them apart, and in this case that is a good thing.

Types And Flavors

Here is a list of types and flavors of Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups:

  • Original Flavor
  • Caramel: Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups with a caramel filling.
  • Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups: Contains dark chocolate and peanut butter.
  • Reese’s Big Cup: A much thicker version of Reese’s Cup.
  • Reese’s Big Cup Crunchy Cookie: A Big Cup that contains speckles of cookies bits inside it.
  • Pieces Big Cup: This is a thicker version of Reese’s peanut butter cups with Reese’s Pieces inside it.
  • Pieces Stuffed Reese’s Cups: A original Reese’s Cup with Reese’s Pieces inside it.
  • Reese’s Peanut Butter And Banana Creme flavored Cups: A collector edition Elvis themed version of Reese’s Cups.
  • Reese’s Peanut Butter Lovers Cups: This is a limited edition version that is coated on the top with a shell of a smooth and sweet tasting peanut butter cream. There is also a completely coated version of that candy that consists of a large amount of peanut butter cream both on the outside and inside of the peanut butter cup.
  • Reese’s Peanut Chocolate Lovers Cups: This limited edition version of Reese’s Cups contains a thicker coating of rich milk chocolate then the classic version.
  • Reese’s Stuffed With Crunchy Cookie: These Reese’s Cups contains speckles of crunchy cookies bits inside the peanut butter cup.
  • Breyers Reese’s Ice Cream: This is a chocolate Ice Cream made by Breyers that has Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup pieces embedded into it.
  • Reese’s International Delight Coffee Creamer: This is a spin-off product that features Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup flavored Coffee Creamer.
  • White Chocolate: A version of Reese’s Cups that contains white chocolate surrounding a peanut butter center.
  • Honey Roasted Flavor: This version of Reese Cups promotes a “Flavor of Georgia” Honey Roasted theme. The taste of this candy contains a sharp and sweet honey taste to it.
  • Reese’s Miniatures: A smaller version of Reese’s Cups. Often sold in a bag, but can be found individually wrapped.
  • Reese’s Miniatures Sugar Free: A sugar free version of Reese’s Miniatures.
  • Reese’s Peanut Butter Sauce: A Reese’s Cups flavored sauce for baking, toppings, and shakes.
  • Reese’s Thins: Theses are a spin-off to the original Reese’s Cups. Reese’s Thins are a 40 percent thinner version, and come in milk and dark chocolate flavors. Reese’s Thins was introduced in the year 2019.
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Child Experiences With Reese’s Cups

Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups were a mainstay for me during childhood, my number 1 candy brand. It was and still is by far my favorite candy. When I was a kid I was go nuts for Reese’s Cups, and while I have grown up a bit now, I still find myself craving these and I buy them regularly. Reese’s chocolate and peanut butter tastes are second to none.

They easily beat out everyone else. I would eat Reese’s Cups for almost any reason, and I still find myself looking for an excuse to get it; “Oh, ill want a snack later” is pretty much what I think when I see Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups in stores. They put them by the cash register for a reason, they know it is an impulse buy.

From childhood to adulthood these things have me legitimately hooked. The flavor of them is what keeps me coming back, ever since I was a kid I loved the taste. But it is also the smoothness of the candy, it is soft and easy to chew candy and it just comes off as something exquisite to eat.

Packaging Style

Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups tends to use orange as the main color for its packaging style. The shade of orange used tends to stand out on shelves and is not a commonly used color. Reese’s Cups tends to use different coloring to help signify differences in flavor and variety. White Chocolate Reese’s have primarily white-colored packages, but still, make use of the color orange in the very center of the packaging to help distinguish the candy as a Reese’s branded product.

Most of the other flavors of Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups tend to have orange-colored packaging much like the original, however, the packaging of the variants of the original version will often incorporate different secondary color schemes. For example, Reese’s Dark Chocolate Cups have mostly orange-colored packaging but also incorporate stripes of brown on the end of the package, where you tend to open up the packaging up by tearing it.

The Reese’s name is almost always shown in large yellow front, taking up most of the packaging design space. Usually the boldly printed name “Reese’s” will be in the center of the packaging. There are some exceptions to this rule, however, such as with the Reese’s Peanut Butter Lovers variety that had the product’s name slightly above center and to the left.

Some types of packages of Reese’s Cups will have a picture of Reese’s cup or a partial one displayed on the package also, helping to show what the product looks like. Some special edition packaging may have special effects, such as glow in the dark packaging that was released for Reese’s Cups as Halloween candy.

Pictures

Here are some pictures of Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups

Commercials

Here are some commercials featuring Reese’s Cups:

HOW AUSTRALIAN MICK BURKE EATS A REESE’S CUP. THIS COMMERCIAL IS FROM THE YEAR 2000.


https://youtube.com/watch?v=6v_trNDRk2E

A LITTLE VIDEO ABOUT KEEPING YOUR REESE’S CUPS COOL IN THE HEAT.


A 2018 REESE’S PEANUT BUTTER CUP COMMERCIAL ADVERTISEMENT.

Ingredients

This information is for a 2 cup package of Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups.

  • Milk Chocolate {Sugar, Cocoa Butter, Chocolate, Skim Milk, Milk Fat, Lactose, Lecithin (Soy), PGPR}
  • Peanuts
  • Sugar
  • Dextrose
  • Salt
  • TBHQ
  • Citric Acid to maintain freshness.

Nutrition

Serving Size: 1 package (42g) % Daily Value *
Amount Per Serving
Calories 210
Total Fat 12g 16%
Saturated Fat 4.5g 22%
Trans Fat 0g
Cholesterol <5mg 1%
Sodium 150mg 6%
Total Carbohydrates 24g 9%
Fiber 2g 6%
Total Sugars 22g
Added Sugars 20g 40%
Protein 5g
Vitamin D 0%
Calcium 4%
Iron 6%
Potassium 4%

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Jack Link’s Beef Jerky

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Whoppers

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Please leave a review or any memories of this snack in the comments below. Thank you!

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6 Comments

  1. I am 66 years old.. I have been eating Reeses since I was either 4 or 5 years of age.. This is now and always has been my favorite candy after all these years.. I also love to eat Reeses Sticks..especially during the summer when I have had them in the freezer..I also like Byers Chocolate Reeses Ice Cream.. My only regret, I was not able to get a Reeses pie during Thanksgiving.. Reeses Milk Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups are the best.. I eat them every week.. except in March 2017, while I was hospitalized, with 200 fractures to left side of my face liked a cracked egg and 8 broke ribs.. I should have died.. GOD had other plans for me.. Maybe one day..Reeses will give me a years supply from winning some type of contest.
    Thank you so much for your care for such an awesome candy..
    May GOD continue to you and Reeses and Hersheys.. Yall are Best!!

  2. oh, reeses are the best ever candy! c’mon….peanut butter and chocolate, together.
    what could be better. and if kept really cold. the bestest!

  3. I enjoy from time to time having a Reese Peanut Butter cups, however, they seem to get thinner and smaller over the years.

    The “King Size” is just the size of a regular candy bar, no value for money there.

    I have been to the Hershey Parks many times in Pennsylvania, and had a good time with my family, and the Reese Peanut Butter were much larger.

  4. I remember when I lived on Donaldson, TN I was young like in 1969 I was 6 , we would stay at my great granny’s house alot during the summer. We would see the ads on TV and see the signs and couldn’t wait to go just down the street with our older cousins to rexal drug store to get a pk of reeses . That was the highlight of the week . I’m now older and still eat from time to time.
    I was craving one a second ago. Looked in the refrigerator found some Hershey milk chocolate bars , mini’s open one dor the peanutbutter jar and was reminded of your old commercial . Thank you for still making them

  5. Loved this post! I had no idea about the origin of Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups. The vintage commercials were especially nostalgic for me. Can’t get enough of that peanut butter and chocolate combo!

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