> died with a couple supers of honey and a sugar brick on top of them... Wouldn't move to the food despite being warm enough for occasional flights.

This is a curious observation. I used to think bees would die with honey when it was too cold to allow them to move, but from what you describe, this hardly seems the case here. 

I think some colonies fail in mid winter due to the lifespan of the bees. We know bees die in 3-6 weeks in summer and from 3-6 months in winter. If there aren't enough long lived bees, perhaps the colony just fails early in the winter.

PLB

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