Best of all, they are wonderfully fragrant. Unfortunately, they are once bloomers. This means you get one knock-out performance in early summer, and then only foliage the rest of the year. Albas are hardy from zones 3-9. If you've seen Victorian wallpaper scattered with fullblown roses then you know what a Bourbon rose looks like.
Bourbons are large and very full, flowering in every shade from deep red to silver pink to striped.
And Bourbons, unlike the albas, are repeat bloomers. You get a spectacular early show, and intermittent blooms throughout the growing season in zones 5 through 10. Most Bourbons are also spectacularly fragrant. If asked to choose just one Bourbon I would be hard pressed to choose between Variegata di Bologna , a striped wonder that can be trained up a pillar, or Zepherine Drouhin . The latter is one of the few climbing Bourbons, and is nearly thornless.