rotten egg

When it’s not saving us from asphyxiation or carrying out useful industrial processes, dimethyl sulfide also lends its "low-tide, rotten egg facet" as a nearly subconscious flavor in food and drinks, measured in a few parts per million.

But now this bioluminescent algae is dying and releasing hydrogen sulfide gas, which causes a rotten egg smell, explained Laura Rink, associate director at Heal the Bay Aquarium in Santa Monica.

A "rotten egg" smell has persisted for more than a year - to the detriment of nearby householders - despite assurances the emissions believed to be responsible had been reduced.

The flavors ranged from the standard raspberry and peach to the kinds of flavors most people spend their lives actively trying to avoid, like rotten egg and “barf.”

Most notably, in July, air district inspectors smelled a “rotten egg” odor emanating from a gas well.