About 80 per cent of sugar cane acreage in the State of São Paulo is planted with Co.290. Various strains of alcoholic yeast were compared in their ability to ferment the juice of this variety. Four strains out of eleven (F-29, F-34, F-1, and F-2) gave yields that were significantly higher than that of the others. The utilization of selected yeast strains contributed to a better fermentation and gave a more uniform product at lower costs.