Moca Creme vs Moleanos

Moca Creme and Moleanos are the two most renowned beige limestones from Portugal, but despite their clear difference in terms of look, many people still confuse both of them.

We make here an analysis of both limestones, showing which its main differences and common points, in order to make a complete review of two of the most relevant limestones from Portugal.

Moca Creme vs Moleanos

Both Moca Creme and Moleanos are beige colored limestones that are extracted in the same extraction area in Portugal, he Serra D´Aire and Candeeiros park. This is in fact the main extraction area in Portugal, where other limestones like the Rosal, Cabeca Veada or Azul Valverde are also extracted. Technically these two limestones share a similar evolution and historical composition, with quarries being no further away than about 20 kilometers.

Despite these common points, there are three main factors that distinguish both limestones from each other:
> appearance: while the Moleanos is characterized by its fairly uniform beige colored background, the Moca Creme main characteristic is its uniform parallel vein and beige colored background.

> technical properties: the Moleanos limestone is a fairly harder type of limestone, being commonly used in distinct flooring applications. This is not the case with the Moca Creme, which does not have such hardness, being mostly used in coverings and cladding applications.
> variations: this is perhaps one of the points where these limestone diverge the most. While the Moleanos present some blue color variations in relation to the beige color, the Moca Creme can have variations as cross cut or vein cut.

Alternative limestones?

Despite these evident differences, we say that the Moleanos is an alternative to the Moca Creme limestone, and the other way around.

These two limestones have few things in common that its possible to find the exact type of variation that match the other limestone. For example, on the picture below you can see how visually similar the Moca Creme fine grain cross cut (as cross cut) is in relation to the Moleanos fine grain. We see that the Moca Creme presents a shadow structure with some dispersed grain, while the Moleanos presents a more uniform grain background. However, if we present both limestones with a honed finishing, it will be fairly hard to tell the difference.
This is a good example on how these two limestones can be alternatives to each other. They are technically different, but if we are trying to match appearance, it is possible to find a result.

But despite any possible attempts in trying to present these limestones as direct competitors and alternatives, the reality is that they are fairly different limestones that often cater to different market segments and projects. And both limestones will continue to have their own identity, markets and supply structure.