Very high gravity (VHG) wheat mashes containing more than 300 g of dissolved solids per liter were prepared and fermented with active dry yeast at 20, 25, 30, and 35 degrees C with and without yeast extract as nutrient supplement. At 20 degrees C, mashes with 38% (w/v) dissolved solids end-fermented without any nutrient supplementation and maximum ethanol yields of 23.8% (v/v) were obtained. With increasing temperatures, the sugar consumption decreased. Addition of yeast extract stimulated the rate of fermentation at all temperatures, but did not increase the total amount of sugar consumed. The stimulatory effect of yeast extract on cell multiplication decreased with increasing sugar concentration, and virtually no difference in cell number was observed between yeast extract-supplemented and unsupplemented mashes at sugar concentrations above 33% (w/v). The fermentative capacity of the yeast (expressed as maximum specific rate of sugar consumption) remained the same at all sugar concentrations in unsupplemented mashes, but decreased in yeast extract-supplemented mashes at sugar concentrations below 33% (w/v). When the sugar concentration was above 33% sugar (w/v), the fermentative capacity in yeast extract-supplemented mashes was greater than that observed in unsupplemented samples.