A process for preparing a non-racemic aminoalcohol is provided. The process includes the step of contacting a chiral alpha-amino carbonyl compound and hydrogen, in the presence of a non-racemic hydrogenation catalyst, at a temperature, pressure and for a length of time sufficient to produce the non-racemic aminoalcohol. In a preferred embodiment, the process can be described by the reaction scheme:
where R is hydrogen, alkyl, substituted alkyl, aryl, substituted aryl or hetereoaryl group; and E can be hydrogen, COOR, CONHR, CONR2, COOH, COR, CN, NO2, alkyl, substituted alkyl, aryl, substituted aryl or hetereoaryl group.