Addition of lithium bis(trimethylsilyl)amide to a cooled solution of benzaldehyde (I), followed by treatment with the lithiated anion of 2-picoline (II), gave rise to the silylated amino intermediate (III), which, upon acidic quenching, yielded the racemic alpha-phenyl-2-pyridineethanamine (IV). Resolution of amine (IV) with S-(+)-mandelic acid in EtOAc provided the target (S)-amine mandelate salt (V). Liberation of the free amine with NaOH and subsequent treatment with HCl in EtOAc furnished the corresponding dihydrochloride