You may recall that WSD has been predicting for some time that Suntory Holdings would be increasing its US presence (see WSD 01-24-2013 ), but we didn't expect it quite like this. Of course, the big news this morning (and probably the year) is that Suntory has agreed to acquire Beam Inc. for $16 billion - a move that has taken the majority of the industry by surprise. Since Beam spun off from Fortune Brands, it's been the target of speculation that Diageo, Pernod Ricard, Bacardi or a consortium of these companies would make a play.