Céline Forestier

class: Tea-Noisette Rose
breeding: Trouillard, 1842
photographed by Daphne Filiberti in her garden

'Céline Forestier' is a terribly refined rose. When the rose is in bloom I daydream about throwing a Calvados party (this is the pastry chef in me). The rose was bred by Trouillard of Angers, in 1842. Although it would be appropriate to serve a nice white wine from the Loire, it reminds me more of apple brandy, and buttery carmelized pears. The scent is like delicate tea. Graham Thomas noted that the flowers are of especially high quality: "Tight buds borne singly or in small clusters open out to a perfect circle of flat petals, with quartering and pronounced button eye, silky, and of refreshing creamy pale yellow with peach tones in the center on opening." The rose has reached about 10 or 12 feet in my garden. I have it both trained on a pergola and on a tripod as a centerpeice. It can take a couple of years to settle, so be patient and the rose will reward you.