Additional reporting by Martinne Geller and Olivia Oran

Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton and Sidley Austin have scored lead advisory roles on Japan’s Suntory Holdings’ agreement to acquire U.S. spirits company Beam Inc for $13.6 billion cash.

Including the assumption of Beam’s net debt, the deal is valued at $16 billion. It brings together Beam’s Jim Beam and Maker’s Mark bourbons, Courvoisier cognac and Sauza tequila with Suntory’s Yamazaki, Hakushu, Hibiki and Kakubin Japanese whiskies, Bowmore Scotch whisky and Midori liqueur.

Once the acquisition is completed, Suntory will become the third largest whiskey company and the fifth largest malt whiskey company by volume, according to International Wine & Spirit Research.

The deal boosts Suntory’s market share in the U.S. to 11 percent from less than 1 percent, according to Stifel Nicolaus analyst Mark Swartzberg.

The proposed acquisition is also Japan’s third-largest announced outbound deal of all time, according to Thomson Reuters data.

A Cleary Gottlieb team led by New York-based corporate partners Paul Shim and Benet O’Reilly is advising Suntory on the transaction. Shim and O’Reilly are being assisted by New York partners Meme Peponis (financing), Arthur Kohn (executive compensation and employee benefits) and Jason Factor (tax), as well as Washington D.C. partner Mark Nelson (competition) and Brussels partner Robbert Snelders (competition).

Sidley Austin is representing Beam on the transaction.

Suntory already distributes Beam products in Japan, and Beam distributes Suntory’s products in Singapore and other Asian markets.

Suntory already has a portfolio of Japanese whiskies and one Scotch that are strong in its home market, but the acquisition of Beam gives it bourbon, Scotch, Irish and Canadian whiskies and access to a stronger distribution network not just in the U.S. but in key emerging markets such as India, Russia and Brazil.

The combined company will have annual sales of about $4.3 billion.

Suntory intends to fund the acquisition with cash on hand and fully committed financing from Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ.

Financial advisers in the deal are Mitsubishi UFJ Morgan Stanley for Suntory and Centerview Partners and Credit Suisse for Beam.