Following suburban complaints that their water tastes “nasty” or like dirt, the Birmingham Water Works Board has released an official explanation for the distinctive taste.

Julian King, who lives in Homewood near Samford University, started noticing over the weekend that his water had a noticeably different flavor.

“My wife thinks it’s a chemical taste, but I think it tastes like soil,” King said. “The water appears to be clear still. We have lived here for five years and always bragged about how good our water tastes.”

They wondered if anyone else noticed a funky taste to the water. They checked “What’s Happening in Homewood” on Facebook and found this anonymous complaint:

“Does anybody know what’s going on with the water? It has smelled and tasted nasty since Thursday. Even my clothes smell weird from the wash!”

Birmingham Water Works registered complaints from customers in north Hoover, Homewood, Mountain Brook, portions of Vestavia Hills and in the UAB area.

Now the Birmingham Water Works Board has an official explanation:

“Birmingham Water Works is aware of the taste and odor concerns reported by customers in North Hoover, Homewood, portions of Vestavia Hills, Mountain Brook, and UAB,” the board said in a statement released Tuesday.

“Our sampling indicates increased levels of Geosmin in the drinking water which is responsible for the recent taste and odor questions. Geosmin is a naturally occurring compound. There are no negative health effects associated with the consumption of Geosmin. Geosmin is what gives fresh grapes, wines, beets, mushroom, and carrots their earthy smell and taste. Drinking water utilities throughout the world that use rivers, lakes, and streams as sources of drinking water production often have fluctuations in Geosmin levels due to seasonal changes, especially in the spring.”

According to the American Chemical Society, geosmin is a natural “bicyclic terpene” with an “earthy odor.”

The human nose can detect it at concentrations in air as low as five parts per trillion. It’s the reason why a beet smells like a beet.

It was first described in 1936 in London, and was named by scientists at Rutgers University 30 years later, from the Greek words for “earth” and “smell.”

Birmingham Water Works says testing shows the water is safe to drink.