How to use に限って【かぎって】 correctly


I came across the expression に限って but not too sure how to use it. It seems to
mean "especially/of all the/only" and has to be used in a negative manner.

However, I am confused with the following examples:

> × その日に限っていい天気だった。  
>  Only on that day, the weather was good.
>
> ○ 夏はビールに限る。  
>  Beer is the only beverage for summer. (implying beer is the best option)

Is there an easy explanation as to why the first example is wrong and the
second one is right?




"In a negative manner" does not mean the sentence must be a grammatically
negative one. "～に限って" tends to be followed by a phrase which denies something
previously implied by the context, but not always.

The first sentence makes perfect sense in certain situations. For example,
suppose the weather was good on "that" very day, although it had been raining
these days. If you wanted rain on "that" day, too (for example because you
wanted a certain event on that day to be cancelled), then you can say:

> （最近はずっと雨だったのに、）その日に限っていい天気だった。

This emphasizes the speaker's disappointment as compared to "その日だけはいい天気だった".

