Try this link at HMF for some info about a man who bred rugosas in order to use them for making rose hip jam. You can click on the "Plants Bred" tab to see the names. Not all ended up setting hips though. Angel Gardens in Florida has imported some of them (producing hips and not). These imports are due to be released from quarantine in February 2013, so it may be possible to get one in the "Wild" series then.

As to rose hip tea specifically, I've read that often Rosa canina (the dog rose) is used to make tea (and cough syrup rich in vitamin c). Judy Polinsky (sp?) at the Huntington in California has been writing a book on rose desserts, but I don't know if it has been published yet or if she has written about rose hip tea. Her rose water/rose petal cookies and cakes are to die for.

In my own garden I do like to snack on fresh rose hips. The tastiest hips so far have been on Rosa spinossisima and Rosa californica. Both of these are kind of crunchy (not stringy like some), have more pulp than seed, and have a tart-sweet flavor. The worst have been from Rosa arnoldiana 'khirgisia--eating those hips is like chewing on a box 'o rocks, no taste at all and the seeds are many and diamond hard.

Melissa

Here is a link that might be useful: Georg Ruf and his rugosas

I used to grow a wild rose which I assume to be Rosa woodsii, as it's the most common wild rose around here, and it made nice tasting hips.

I haven't grown it yet - I've ordered it for this spring - but the Alba "Suaveolens" is renowned for its hips. Hopefully I'll have some to try myself before too long.

If you plan on using the hips for foods or teas make sure you grow them completely chemical free.

Borrow the book The Organic Rose Garden by Liz Druitt. She talks about the tastes of different rose hips by cultivar name and she grew roses without sprays or pesticides.

Her rose growing at that time was in Texas in a zone slightly warmer than 6, but many of her roses will survive and prosper in 6.

Thank you so much for all the suggestions so far everyone! Very helpful :)
Giving me a much better idea on what I am looking for when it's time to start planting.

Txaggiegirl... I really appreciate the offer of a trade, but right now I have nothing to trade. All my seed and plant resources are being planned up for the spring garden and wedding. And we are currently under 12 inches of snow so I wouldn't know what to do with a rose plant right now.

Any good tips on how to clean a fairly large amount of hips? I've got the roses, but have been put off by the massive amount of fiddling that it seems to take to get the hips into a usable state. So I just make rose petal jam.

Great topic. I've been interested in growing roses for hips (and petals) for some time but have had a hard time getting useful advice on cultivars, flavors, processing etc.
Rugosa roses don't grow well here (too warm)so we've had to explore other roses. Rosa californica sounds interesting. Old Blush also has lots of hips - not sure they're the tastiest. Anyone have more suggestions for roses with tasty hips that will grow well in low chill climates?

In stead of doing jam, do jelly with an old fashioned jelly bag and let the good stuff drip through and the hips, fuzzy stuff and bulk stay in the bag.