We're in the Portland OR area. Some varieties I've looked at include Glen 40, Nuccio's Pearl, and Yuletide....

I think all camellia flowers and buds will brown some if they get frozen. And they are winter-blooming, so that's always a possibility of the blooms getting hit with a freeze... each winter is a gamble.

Light-colored flowers show brown spots more than darker colored flowers. 'Glen 40' (AKA 'Coquetti') may be a good choice; I seem to recall that it's a spring bloomer, so if late frosts aren't an issue where you are, a spring-blooming camellia may be a good choice. Fall-blooming camellias (including sasanqua-types like 'Yuletide') may also be a good choice to stagger bloom, and to get a jump on winter weather.

Some older varieties are known to resume blooming after a freeze without much of a pause , and often with very little browning... 'Professor Sargent', 'Kumasaka' and 'Mrs Charles Cobb' are three varieties that come to mind that are good choices.

Something to keep in mind is weather patterns for your area. If Portland is more likely to have late spring freezes than early frosts in autumn, then you may want to plant more early bloomers, including a Sasanqua or two. If the reverse is true, there are a good many choices for late-blooming (spring-blooming) varieties, such as the 'April' series of camellias.

Mid-season bloomers or varieties with a long blooming season such as 'Nuccio's Bella Rossa' will provide the winter color that camellias are famous for, but any camellia (early, mid-season or late) can get zapped by freezing weather that hits as the camellia is blooming or has buds already showing color. Having varieties that bloom at different times may ensure that you'll have at least one camellia that blooms well that season, even if the weather is unusually cold.

I would definitely consult a local nursery or camellia club for advice about which varieties seem to do best in your neck of the woods. If there's a public garden there with a good collection of camellias, a visit to see which you like best can be very helpful.

Good luck,

Virginia

as virginia has already mentioned, weather is normally the main culprit of spoiled blooms. our local camellia club show was cancelled this spring because of the cold and frost we had. everyone's flowers were damaged to the point that there were no good specimens to display. some years are better than others and that is always the risk for winter/late spring blooming plants. I would choose a cultivar that I like and hope for the best. or go with a fall blooming camellia.

there is also the possibility that your childhood plant had camellia petal blight, which is very unsightly. there is a lot of information available online about that fungal disease. the flowers will spot with brown which begins to cover the petals and many fall off to the ground prematurely.