Its beautiful. I like the shape of that flower!

It is really pretty. Just a strange, unexpected fragrance. Not almonds and honey like sometimes described. At least not in my yard.

Lol. Quite beautiful though!

I adore its unique scent. Makes me think of Grandmas and their hand cream.

I could never pinpoint a brand, but all of my friends agree that its scent is "lotion".

Steven

I have one planted. Can't wait to smell that hand cream lol

I believe this is the fragrance often called "myrrh". Some people hate it. I'm one of its fans. For those who don't already know this, 'Winchester Cathedral' is the white sport of 'Mary Rose'. I've always like WC, but have been nursing along a weak specimen that, as so often happens in my garden, was planted in a bad spot and not growing, so that I removed it to the propagating beds. I hope to see it happily established in a well prepared site some day.

I need to study the myrrh scent. If I remember correctly, and I may not, it came into the Austin roses with 'Constance Spry' and is found in a number of his varieties. Some old roses have this fragrance as well; 'Belle Isis', 'Belle Amour', and the Ayrshire rambler that has come into my garden under two or three names, 'Venusta Pendula' or 'Ayrshire Splendens', whichever (or both) it is. Some year, not this one, I need to do a smell test of all these varieties and see how similar they are. Perhaps the scent came originally from R. arvensis?? This is a parent of the Ayrshires.

When mine gets its leaves & flowers; I will see if I can smell it. But on the plus side it was one of my hardiest roses over the winter; other than some of the canadian roses. It only needs a light pruning this spring, less than 2 inches of dead at the tips. That is amazing for here. I like the blooms on this, but they are smaller compared to some of my other austins. I really need to remember to stop & sniff the roses. I never really pay attention to fragrance.

Pic from last year.

Ha! So I'm not the only one that noticed it's Eucerin lotion scent! It's bizarre! So funny! Gorgeous photos though.

My hubby likes it... he said the same thing as you Steven... reminded him of his grandma.

Melissa it's mild and not that medicinal myrrh scent... so I wouldn't call it myrrh. David Austin and HMF describe it as old rose, sweet, with honey and almonds... or something like that.

I call balderdash. It's Eucerin hand cream.

Eucerin--that's great! I found that the scent grew a little sweeter and more honeyed over time. It's kind of fun to mix WC into a bouquet of scented roses. The perfume actually seems to blend well with others. The blooms are lovely! Carol

This was my very first rose - I have it in "tree" form. It definitely smelled of honey and almonds to me last year - I'll look for Eucerin when it blooms!

I don't have this rose and have never smelled it, but am now intrigued by Cori Ann's description. I have several rose's that remind me of my grandmother. She always wore Rose Milk brand lotion in that pink milk bottle shaped pump. I called it "old lady" smell back then and did not like it at all...but now that I'm an old lady, I'm rather fond of roses that have that scent, and the memories of her they invoke.

I haven't noticed it before, but Mary rose does smell like hand lotion to me

Mine still smells like roses in a NY subway to me. Sometimes it smells like hyacinths.