Venlafaxine [1] and [2] 1 is a new generation antidepression drug, quite different from other antidepressants having a unique structure and morphological effects. The earlier patented methods for its synthesis involve the use of strong bases such as n-BuLi, [3] and [4] LDA, 5 NaOMe, NaOEt, NaNH 2 , NaH, 6 etc., for coupling p-methoxyphenylacetonitrile 2 with cyclohexanone 3 under anhydrous conditions, at −78 °C, to give the 1-[cyano(4-methoxyphenyl)methyl]cycloalkanol 4. The ...