Some great things are coming out of the University of Calgary’s engineering faculty, and not all of them are courtesy the graduates.
Twenty-one-year-old third-year chemical engineering student Ravinder Minhas is spending his summer perfecting his craft and gulping down the mistakes. Along with his 22-year-old sister Manjit, Minhas owns and operates his own business: Mountain Crest Liquors.
“We have a wide variety of wines, spirits, liqueurs and, of course, beer,” states the young entrepreneur. “That’s my focus, I take a great deal of pride and put in a lot of hours working on the brew, the recipe, pretty much everything to do with the product.”
With four different beers currently offered, Mountain Crest classic lager, Mountain Crest pilsner, Mountian Crest perfect 10 and Jack’s American Lager (the only imported beer), Mountain Crest covers the spectrum, but Minhas isn’t satisfied with complacency.
“It was a big risk getting into the business initially, but it has really paid off,” he explains. “Now that we’re established in Alberta and B.C., it’s time to look elsewhere. We’re thinking of getting into Ontario and Nova Scotia and I’m always playing with new recipes for possible expansion of the product line.”
The tricky part of this summer job is that it doesn’t end when school starts up again. Considering the workload an engineering student faces, being vice-president, co-founder and owner of a rapidly growing company requires some phenomenal time management.
“My cell phone never seems to stop ringing,” laughs Minhas. “It’s a full time job to be sure, but it’s all about time management. I love my work and I love my classes, so I can’t see myself giving either of them up.”
As for post-graduation plans, Minhas, like many other students, doesn’t have anything specific in mind.
“What the future brings, well, I’m not a hundred per cent sure, but I do know Mountain Crest will be a part of it.”
At less than a dollar a bottle, it may be in the future for many more than just Minhas–especially since it is available at most liquor stores around Calgary.