Julie said:

I'm working towards adding more dark colors to my garden. My problem is I keep
buying "red" roses who look plain old pink to me. ...
I want RED, screaming red, not pink. ...

Here are some recent introductions that are true red and don't turn
purple with sun exposure either:

'Raven' a grandiflora from Weeks that stays red for 2 weeks even in
the hot sun. very long lasting blooms

'Crimson Bouquet' another non fading thick petaled grandiflora that
lasts a long long time and is a striking true red color.

And we can't leave out 'Veteran's Honor'. Very red, doesn't purple at
all and looks and blooms great. Better 'Hybrid Tea' exhibitionist
form but not quite as long lasting as the previous two.

... have you ever
grown Apricot Nectar? ...One of
those fab 1960s floribundas. Bulletproof like Europeana.

Funny you should mention this one. Recently I was trying to work out a trade
with someone and she offered an Apricot Nector.

I wouldn't bother with 'Apricot Nectar'. It does bloom a lot, but
the blooms are blousy and they blow fast and they fade quickly to
whitish in the sun. 'Fragrant Apricot' is a much better choice. (I
grow both of them by the way).

One of the all time great modern apricots is 'Gruss an Coburg', which
despite it's name isn't nearly as old as 'Gruss an Aachen'. It is
extremely fragrant as well. A real surprise for me in its first year
here.

Have a good one,

Bob Bauer
http://www.rose-roses.com/