Introduction

In early 2021, Nespresso did a redesign of their various Original Line Lungo coffees. This is all outlined in my Nespresso 2021 New Lungos Information article. This post is a comparison of both the original Envivo Lungo and the new Cape Town Envivo Lungo, basically a “showdown” between the two coffees!

Preparation

To prepare my testing, I used two Origin Collection Lungo size cups and brewed the original Envivo Lungo in one, and in the other cup the Cape Town Envivo Lungo. By the way, those Origin Collection cups are great for coffee, since they are double walled and maintain the coffee temperature and enhance the aromas of the coffee. The coffees were brewed one after another so that they could be compared at the same time.

Aroma Comparison

The original Envivo Lungo definitely has light and sweet caramel notes to it that are not present in the Cape Town. I’m getting more of a light spicy and woody aroma to the Cape Town.

Taste Comparison

The crema is almost identical on both of them, but the Cape Town crema appears darker and slightly thinner. The Cape Town crema tastes harsher then the original Envivo, and the Envivo crema tastes sweeter.

When sipping and slurping, the Original Envivo Lungo is smooth and malty, almost like a cookie (or gingerbread). The Cape Town is not sweet, and is more like a woody and spicy flavor. My favorite of the two is the Original Envivo Lungo, because of the smooth malty flavor and sweetness, almost reminds me of toast and would be good with breakfast. The Cape Town would be more of a coffee you would drink if you want a kick in the morning.

Additional Notes

When drinking the two to compare them, I tended not to have the desire to even drink the Cape Town, the Original Envivo Lungo was just so much better that you just want to finish it all. They both have after notes; I think the Cape Town has more (light) bitter and spicy after notes, and the Original Envivo has more of a (light) bitter and malty after notes. I can’t get over the fact that the Cape Town Envivo Lungo has a slight harshness as part of the aftertaste, which makes me wonder why Nespresso changed the formula.

Result

The Original Envivo Lungo is defintely a great coffee, and I’m gonna miss it. That’s why it was advertised as a breakfast coffee, since it’s great to drink first thing in the morning.

If you have the opportunity to go to a boutique and they happen to have the original Envivo Lungo in stock, you might want to pick up a few sleeves, since once it’s gone it’s no longer coming back. It’s a great coffee.

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