Virginia's Favorite Jelly Bean Flavor May Surprise You

When it comes to jelly beans, there's no bigger month for the treat than April. Easter is just around the corner, on April 1, and National Jelly Bean Day is celebrated on April 22. In honor of these momentous sugar holidays, Candystore.com has pulled together its annual list of the most popular jelly bean flavors in the country, as well as in each state where Virginians have a surprising taste.

This year, the nation has a new favorite flavor, according to the online candy retailer. The number one flavor in the land this year is — drum roll, please — Buttered Popcorn.

"Yes, it's polarizing. But it's also America's number one favorite jelly bean flavor," said Candystore.com on its blog. "Thousands of people love this smooth, salty and savory jelly bean the best, while others scrunch up their noses when it's mentioned. Some even write nasty comments about it in their survey form… :) But when the results were tallied, more people loved buttered popcorn flavor than any other."

The confection retailer created the rankings using jelly bean sales data for more than a decade, as well as SurveyMonkey and Facebook polls of more than 12,000 people.

In Virginia, the favorite flavor is Cinnamon, followed by Watermelon and then the new national choice, Buttered Popcorn. "Virginia has been home to a ton of famous people—Thomas Jefferson, Pharrell, and Dave Grohl to name a few. But one of this southern state’s biggest celebrities is cinnamon flavored jelly beans. Virginia is for Lovers, and in this case it’s for those who love spicy cinnamon jelly beans too," said Candystore.com.

What flavor of jelly beans will be in your Easter basket? Tell us in comments below.

Neighboring Maryland loves orange, while North Carolina goes for the dethroned national champion, black licorice. West Virginia is fond of blueberry flavored jelly beans.

The top 21 most popular flavors in the country are:

• Buttered Popcorn
• Black Licorice
• Cinnamon
• Watermelon
• Cherry
• Juicy Pear
• Orange
• Green Apple
• Toasted Marshmallow
• Coconut
• Strawberry
• Cotton Candy
• Blueberry
• Bubblegum
• Root Beer
• Peach
• Coffee
• Grape
• Lemon
• Red Apple
• Chocolate

Source: 10+ years online candy sales data from CandyStore.com.

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Photo: Daniel Wiedemann/ Shutterstock