Introduction

This is a review of the Nespresso World Explorations Lisbon Bica coffee capsule for the Original Line machine, which had an early release in the US in mid April 2024. The Lisbon Bica is part of the World Explorations series where the coffee represents the coffee style from a particular city; In this case the coffee style is from Lisbon Portugal, and Bica is a style of coffee that is strong and typically a Lungo draw. Although for this Nespresso release it is a ristretto size pour. The Bicas in Portugal are know to be very bitter and typically are served with sugar for a patron to add to their coffee and reduce the bitterness of the coffee. The Nespresso WE Lisbon Bica has a bitterness rating of 4; take a look at my spreadsheet for all the ratings for the coffee (and other coffees).

The coffee consists of a blend of robusta and arabica beans from Nicaragua and El Salvador. The arabica beans are lightly roasted and the robusta beans are dark roasted. The coffee is recommended to be brewed as a ristretto size cup.

NOTE: The World Explorations Lisbon Bica is a Limited Edition release; at first when I wrote this article I thought it would be a regular release, but it’s not. So if you really like it, I suggest buying a lot, because it may not return.

Aromas

The Nespresso Lisbon Bica has really strong aromas. The aromas are roasted and spicy notes. Possibly with some flowery like notes.

When the Lison Bica is brewed as an espresso sized pour, there is a lot less aromas from the coffee. When brewed this way, I’m getting more malted like notes.

Taste

The Nespresso WE Lisbon Bica has an absolutely lovely bitter and malty like notes. There are very light acidity notes in the background, but the overall taste is really nice! Feels like an intensity of 9 or possibly higher – note that Nespresso hasn’t given an intensity rating for this coffee. If you like bitterness in your coffee, then you will really like this coffee.

On a second day I tried brewing the WE Lison Bica as an espresso sized cup. The taste is more subdued, and I definitely don’t recommend brewing this way. There are bitter notes, but it’s tasting more like it’s washed out. There are also strong after notes, which don’t feel as pleasant as compared to when brewed as a ristretto.

Result

The World Exploration Lisbon Bica is a really wonderful coffee. I highly suggest you get a sleeve and try it out. The WE Lisbon Bica is not as good as the Ispirazione Novecento LE of 2021, but it’s really nice if you like bitter tasting coffees. I also consider the World Explorations Miami better than the Lison Bica.

The Nespresso WE Lisbon Bica is a great addition to the World Explorations line up, and I highly suggest brewing as a ristretto sized cup. Enjoy your coffee!

Please go to my ko-fi buy me a coffee page at: https://ko-fi.com/alvinbunk to support and donate to me for writing coffee reviews. Thank you!