Large differences in colony forming capacity, ethanol production and inhibitor conversion were noted between nine different strains of Saccharomyces cerevisiae in anaerobic batch and fed-batch cultures on dilute acid wood hydrolysate. S. cerevisiae ATCC 96581 was able to metabolize all added glucose and mannose in fed-batch experiments. The choice of production strain will have a significant effect on the performance of a hydrolysate-based ethanol production plant.