Light, Love and Coffee: A Lisbon Story

Time for a coffee story… right from the picturesque hills of Lisbon, the Beautiful. We take you to the hills of Madragoa quarter, where yellow street cars rattle along between pastel-coloured houses. It’s here that the smell of freshly roasted coffee guides you to the door of “Flor da Selva”, a family-run roastery.

A Step into Portuguese Coffee History

It was on a bright day in 1950 that Senhor Manuel opened the doors to this roastery for the first time. It’s still here, and when you step inside you step into recent Portuguese history, too. When the roastery first opened coffee was a subsidized colonial good, coming mostly from Africa to the Portuguese homeland. Senhor Manuel was fortunate to be in this trade, and “”Flor da Selva”” grew into a trading center and emporium for coffee, spices, tea and deli food.

Contemporary Specialty Coffee

Times have changed. Today the founder’s son and grandson lead a modern specialty coffee roastery. They roast single origins from all over the world, bio coffees and bespoke blends for the cosmopolitan palates of contemporary Lisbon. From these early days on “”Flor da Selva”” has been a pioneer for coffee quality in Portugal, being one of the companies responsible for the so-called “Pure Coffee”, a typically Portuguese blend of coffees from what were then the colonies.

Jorge and Francisco, son and grandson of Senhor Manuel, keep these high standards. Each coffee is appreciated from bean to cup, and the perfect espresso is the final result for a great coffee. When the Astrolab by Fiamma extracts that hazelnut-coloured, creamy, aromatic liquid, Jorge and Francisco know their produce is ready.”