How heavy are they usually?

They are substantial pieces of furniture. A solid oak antique cheese cupboard built to hold dairy produce was framed with thick timber sections that add significant bulk. You need at least two strong people to move a standard sized one. The two-part examples are easier to manage, but the base sections remain incredibly heavy on their own.

I am looking to put one in my modern kitchen for dry food storage, but I am worried about whether the old wood will smell like a dairy?

Most surviving examples lost their original dairy scent decades ago. They've spent the last century sitting in hallways or living rooms rather than working farms. The timber breathes well because of the ventilated doors. Unless a piece has been stored in a damp outbuilding recently, it just smells like old wood and wax polish.

Can shelves be adjusted?

The shelves are almost always fixed in place. The builders housed them directly into the side panels to provide structural rigidity. Adjustable supports couldn't handle the sheer weight of the produce.

My floors are quite uneven in the old part of the house and I wonder if these tall cupboards tend to lean or if the base accommodates a slope?

These cupboards were built for stone dairy floors that were rarely flat. They handle uneven surfaces quite well due to their heavy frame construction. You can pack under the feet with wooden shims to level the carcase. Getting it level is important to ensure the doors hang properly and the latches align.

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An antique cheese cupboard is a ventilated wooden storage piece, usually featuring slatted or spindled fronts, originally built to protect curing cheeses from pests while allowing air to circulate.