I don't know why but when I read your description I immediately thought of 'Sweet Chariot'. It's a minature, mauve pink pom pom flowers and has wonderful fragrance. Any chance you can get a pic on here?

Pippa,

I'll bet Ikayet is right about suggesting that rose is Sweet Chariot. I grew this mini some years ago, and it was extremely fragrant, especially for a mini, and pretty dependable for flower output. Its cascading growth habit made it a poor choice on my part for the front of border location in which I planted mine. They flopped over in a less than graceful manner. I think Sweet Chariot would be ideal grown billowing over a low stone wall or cascading over a boulder. Like most minis, my Sweet Chariot were black spot nightmares. I do not know how it can be grown to its full potential in a humid climate without regular spraying.

Moses

Moses - I really liked that rose. I had it in pots the first years and as long as it was on my porch or in the greenhouse it was fine. Mine got over three feet across and drooped over the pot beautifully. I had to replant it the third year into a really big pot that I didn't take into consideration would not fit through the salvaged door of my homemade greenhouse. I was forced to plant it outside and the next year it BS'd and defoliated even tho I believe I was spraying then, and then died completely over that winter despite heavy mulch. It was definitely worth it while I had it! I'm looking through my photos to see if I can find one.

Well Sweet Chariot does seem like a possibility. I didn't have my camera or phone so no pics, but I go there often and will get a photo. The blooms on it were all dry but still had a wonderful old rose fragrance. They were in a sort of balled or globular shape but small. When I pryed one open it was about 2 inches in diameter. I wonder if they were in that globular shape because of the intermittent freezing temps so they never fully opened and dried like that. I don't remember what this rose looked like in warmer weather because I don't think I noticed it before but being small and having the globular sort of blooms it looked like a miniature of an old garden rose so I smelled it. I do think it probably had an arching droopy shape because I remember having to lift up blooms to smell them. They really had such a nice fragrance and I like how it was small since I'm running out room lol.

'Sweet Chariot'

Such a pretty little rose! It looks like the flowers in that photo if the blooms only partially opened then dried not fully open and sporadically faded so some parts were still deep pink and other parts faded to lavender.

I'm getting a sweet chariot whether or not it was the rose at the garden lol. It's not the first time someone has brought it up and I do have a low retaining wall it could flop over. :)