> Is Winter-hardiness a genetic trait that can get passed along?

The short answer is: of course. 

Evidence is here:

> Africanized, local European, and Africanized x European colonies were started by queen introductions on 5 August, and all surviving colonies were depopulated on 21 February. Five of nine Africanized colonies had died by the end of the experiment, whereas all eight European and all five Africanized x European colonies survived. ... Intermediate values for all characters in the Africanized x European colonies suggest that genes underlying overwintering characters are additive.  -- Villa, J. D., Koeniger, N., & Rinderer, T. E. (1991). Overwintering of Africanized, European, and hybrid honey bees in Germany. Environmental entomology, 20(1), 39-43. Chicago

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