A collection of 18 rare whiskies, originally gifted to a long-serving employee of Marshall Amplification, is set to be sold by Hansons Auctioneers. The bottles, which were never commercially available, will go under the hammer in Derby, U.K., on January 29.
The collection belonged to Andy Lambourne, who started at the amplifier company in 1972 and worked as a wood machinist for 44 years.
It includes 17 bottles of Inchmurrin single malt, which were given to staff at the company’s Bletchley factory each Christmas between 1996 and 2012, the year founder Jim Marshall died.
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READ THE STORY“I’ve never been much of a spirits drinker so I hung on to my bottles over the years,” said Lambourne, who retired in 2016. “I have a feeling most of my colleagues might have drunk theirs.”
The Inchmurrin bottles were produced by the Loch Lomond Distillery. Each features a distinctive label with designs including drums, a Union Jack, a Marshall amp, or Jim Marshall himself.
This series of 17 bottles is expected to sell for an estimated £500.
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Stuart Palmer, head of wines and spirits at Hansons Auctioneers, commented on the collection’s unique provenance.
“This special series of very rare bottlings were only given out to Marshall Amplification’s employees each Christmas,” Palmer said.
“They were never sold outside the company and, with the death of Jim Marshall in 2012, aged 88, production ended – making them all the rarer and more sought after,” he added.
Also being auctioned is an ultra-rare Marshall 50-year-old Islay blended malt, one of only 228 bottles ever produced.
The bottle, which has the words “Fifty Years of Loud” on its box, was presented to Lambourne to mark his 40 years of service with the company.
“The one-off bottle was produced to commemorate Marshall Amplification’s 50-year anniversary in 1972,” Palmer explained. “He was lucky enough to be presented with a bottle, most of which went to Jim Marshall’s famous pals in the music industry.”
This single bottle carries an estimate of £200-£400.
Jim Marshall, known as “the father of loud,” founded his business in the workshop of his London music shop in 1962.
The brand’s amplifiers and speaker cabinets became a signature part of the stage backdrop for musicians including Jimi Hendrix, Jeff Beck, Slash, and Paul Weller.
In 1967, growing demand led the company to move to a dedicated facility in Bletchley, Milton Keynes, where it remains today.
Marshall was also recognized for his charitable efforts, receiving an MBE in 2003 in recognition of his contribution to the music industry and to charity.
In 2025, Willen Hospice in Milton Keynes used funds donated by the Jim Marshall Charity to build a wellbeing room for patients.
Lambourne reflected on his time at the company and its founder.
“It was a great place to work, otherwise I wouldn’t have stayed there so long,” he said.
Palmer concluded: “As well as a legendary name in the music industry, Jim Marshall was clearing a generous man and caring employer, it is a privilege to be selling these much-loved bottles of whisky on behalf of the vendor.”
