Objective: This study aimed to explore the effect of group changes at the third position of the benzene ring of ferulic acid （FA） on the bitterness inhibition effect of branched chain amino acids and their flavor characteristics. Methods: FA and its phenyl ring substituted derivatives were synthesized and their structures were identified by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, and mass spectrometry. The electronic tongue test was used to evaluate the improvement in the bitter taste of branched-chain amino acids by FA and its derivatives, including bitterness inhibition rate, self-flavor, and the effect on other tastes. Results: The results showed that FA and its phenyl ring substituted derivatives exhibited certain bitterness inhibition effects on branched-chain amino acids, and the bitterness inhibition effect of FA was superior to that of other derivatives at different addition amounts except for the A₄ （—F） derivative, which had a similar bitterness inhibition effect on valine as FA （—OCH₃） did. Conclusion: The size of molecular groups and strong electronegativity might be the key factors affecting the bitter inhibition effect, —OCH₃ at position 3 on the benzene ring showed the best bitter inhibition effect.