A method for producing an optically active 2-phenyl-2,3,-dihydroxypropyl azole derivative, which is a useful compound in various fields. An optically active .alpha.-hydroxycarboxylic acid derivative represented by general formula (1) is used as a starting material and is allowed to react with an azole acetic acid derivative (2) to produce a new, optically active azole-alkyl ketone derivative (3). Subsequently, a new, optically active azole-methyl alcohol derivative (5) is produced by highly diastereoselective alkylation by an appropriate combination of a protective group and an organometallic reagent (4). Furthermore, the optically active azole-methyl alcohol derivative (5) is selectively deprotected to produce an optically active 2-phenyl-2,3-dihydroxypropyl azole derivative (6) ##STR00001##