I haven't tried these, but I've eaten lots of roses, mostly gallicas.

They don't look particularly tasty. Most recipes using rose petals say to cut the tough bases off the petals first. It isn't something I bother doing since the roses I tend to eat aren't tough to start with.

All rose flower parts are edible- petals, buds, hips. They are in the same family as apple and cherry trees. People have been eating petals, making rose water and syrup, and drinking rose hip and rose petal tea for ages. You can candy the hips like people do with ginger or citrus rind.

Often darker colored roses are supposed to be more bitter or less appealing in taste. If you are using them in a wet application like a rose water, they can make a more colorful water. Roses with many little petals like cabbage heads or wild roses will give you lots of little tender petals for eating. The big florist kinds of flowers have stronger petals that can be big as spoons and could be used like little lettuce cups are used if you wanted to.

I would hazard a guess that these roses have been bred to be more appealing to eat. A lot of people aren't aware of the edible of flowers. I've seen more seed companies promoting other flowers that are edible too.

I have tasted the Flavorette-Pear'd petals and they taste, um, vaguely....botanical? I agree that roses are edible and they can be colorful additions to salads and things, but they don't add particular taste beyond the visuals. Not like nasturtium flowers or other more pungent blooms.

Mostly I'm just hoping my Flavorette roses grow into a decent rose bush. I view the Flavorette series as mostly marketing hype and can't frankly imagine the general public buying these with the notion "yes, I've always wanted to eat my roses!!" The appeal instead for me and most of the public would be the hardiness and bloomability of these roses as well as general flower impact. I've seen a bush in a greenhouse of the Pear'd that was a substantial display of cream flowers that looked quite nice. Mine were bought as small pots (but inexpensive) so they're a ways from that perspective. The low price was also appealing to me and (again) to the general public.

Cynthia

I've also nibbled on a few rose petals and even tried candying them. Not something I'll do again. meh. :)