I never see the dark mauve on the Weeks web site. Instead, mine looks more like this

https://www.helpmefind.com/rose/pl.php?n=36359

It is a big vigorous rose, easily filling the 6x6 feet I have for it. I'm sure it would get even bigger if it had the room. It is fragrant, but I think it may not have the color you want. Another rose that has a dark mauve color is Midnight Blue.

http://forums2.gardenweb.com/discussions/1674229/rose-midnight-blue

When I want to cheer myself up about how much I'm spending on a rooted rose, I look at the price of cut flowers on Valentine's day. A rooted rose is a bargain, because it will give you roses for years to come. However, if you are choosing just one rose, I would pick Audacieuse 21 , since it seems to be the harder rose to find and is quite beautiful. I love climbers and that rose seems like quite a find!

hmm...I keep on going back and forth. If I do an order at all, I plan to get both,because one is a bare-root (Audacieuse). But if I just got that, shipping would still be 15 euros...see what I mean? now I'm talking myself into saying "yes",thinking "o, it's just anothe 10 euros more , and, after all, 25 euros isn't an exaggerated price at all for such a big plant" Actually, I think both roses are very rare here in Europe, for though it's listed as being carried by a few European nurseries,I'm checking the actual sites listed on HMF,and so far only Dima in France seems to really have it (I have yet to check the Russian nursery). But that is the only thing in particular that I can see really catches my eye from this Dima nursery, and it makes no sense to make an order just for one bare-root rose; I mean, 16 euros, plus shipping, and there I am again spending 25 euros or so...I've also ruled out going to pick it up by public transportation; that, too, would wind up costing me about 20 euros, so for five more I save myself a lot of time and trouble.

Another picture of Audacieuse 21.

http://allthingsplants.com/plants/photo/315526/

Wow, that is gorgeous. I'm so envious of your dilemma.

Is Twilight Zone, another Carruth rose, available in Italy? Or perhaps Ebb Tide? Diane

Twilight Zone, October 8

One word: YES.

lol. So now you've been enabled. Get that Audacieuse in your hands ASAP.

Oh, and the OTB, too.

John

I guess I interpreted dark mauve as more purple. I'm just curious if Blue Bayou is available in Europe (it isn't in the U.S.)? Diane

Blue Bayou

I am absolutely no help because I love to go and pick up a rose in person at the nursery. My husband and I had a lovely 4 day trip to Uetersen near Hamburg just to look at a couple of roses and eventually bought them but we took the trip as a holiday. Why can you drive only locally? Perhaps you can get a friend to go with you and share the driving?

I'd drive there to visit the nursery. How far is it? The money you saved in the shipping, you can get more roses. :-)

OK, you've convinced me! Thank you all! Actually I really would enjoy going in person with my DH, but he's not into gardening and frankly ,this is an extremely busy time in our lives. We both could so use a "lovely four day trip" like mariannese had with her DH,but I'm afraid it ain't going to happen for a while,alas; he's got so many irons on the fire, and so do I.

I'm not a confident driver. I've never driven on a busy highway here in Italy; I did a bit of highway driving way way back when I was a girl, but my dad was sitting right beside me! So it's not that I can't do such a drive, it's just that the idea is a real challenge and when I ever do take such a step, I want to have someone with me. Many other drivers are extremely competitive,for example,and that really rattles me: the other cars streaming all round, being obliged to go fast,worrying that my own anxiety would cause me to drive in a way that would put others as well as myself in danger,etc. Another drawback: I don't have a navigator or any such thing in my car,and am lousy at reading maps,so that would just add to the anxiety problem. And the fact is nobody gives you gas for free. Sure, it wouldn't cost 25 euros to drive there,but adding everything together,I think it's worth it.